T  H  E 


HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 


OF    THE    CITY    OK 


ST.  AUGUSTINE,  FLORIDA, 


FOUNDED     A  .  D  .     1568. 


COMPRISING 


SOME  OF  THE  MOST  INTERESTING  PORTIONS 


EARLY  HISTORY  OF  FLORIDA. 


GEOEGE   R.    FAIRBANKS, 

VICE-PRESIDENT    OF    THE     FLORIDA    HISTORICAL    SOCIETY. 


NEW    YORK: 
CHARLES      B .      NORTON. 

AGENT      FOR      LIBRARIES. 
1858. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  155S,  by 
GEOBGE  E.  FAIRBANKS, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for  the  Southern 
District  of  New  York. 


EAKEE  &  GODWIN.  Printers. 
1  Spruce  St.,  N.  Y. 


RESPECTFULLY     INSCRIBED 


BUCKINGHAM       SMITH,       ESQ., 

r .      3  .      SECRETARY      OF      LEGATION      AT     MADRID, 
T»   WHOSE  EFFORTS  IN   TUB 

DISCOVERY  AND    PRESERVATION   OF  THE   HISTORY  AND   ANTIQUITIES 
OF  THE  SPANISH  DOMINION  IN  AMERICA, 

A         (J   R  A  T  E  F  U  L         A  C  K  N  0  W  L  E  D  0  M  E  N   T 
IS   DUE  FROM 

American     §  t  b  o  I  a  r  s  . 


483938 


PREFACE 


THIS  volume,  relating  to  the  history  and  antiqui 
ties  of  the  oldest  settlement  in  the  United  States, 
has  grown  out  of  a  lecture  delivered  by  the  author, 
and  which  he  was  desired  to  embody  in  a  more 
permanent  form. 

The  large  amount  of  interesting  material  in  my 
possession,  has  made  my  work  rather  one  of  labori 
ous  condensation  than  expansion. 

I  have  endeavored  to  preserve  as  fully  as  possible, 
the  style  and  quaintness  of  the  old  writers  from 
whom  I  have  drawn,  rather  than  to  transform  or 
embellish  the  narrative  with  the  supposed  graces 
of  modern  diction ;  and,  as  much  of  the  work  con 
sisted  in  translations  from  foreign  idioms,  this  pecu 
liarly  un-English  style,  if  I  may  so  call  it,  will  be 
more  noticeably  observed.  I  have  mainly  sought 


6  PREFACE. 

to  give  it  a  permanent  value,  as  founded  on  the  most 
reliable  ancient  authorities ;  and  thus,  to  the  extent 
of  the  ground  which  it  covers,  to  make  it  a  valuable 
addition  to  the  history  of  our  country. 

In  that  portion  of  the  work  devoted  to  the 
destruction  of  the  Huguenot  colony  and  the  forces 
of  Ribault,  I  have  in  the  main,  followed  the  Spanish 
accounts,  desiring  to  divest  the  narrative  of  all 
suspicion  of  prejudice  or  unfairness ;  Barcia,  the 
principal  authority,  as  is  well  known,  professing  the 
same  faith  as  Menendez,  and  studiously  endeavoring 
throughout  his  work,  to  exalt  the  character  of  the 
Adelantado. 

I  am  under  great  obligations  to  my  friend,  BUCK 
INGHAM  SMITH,  ESQ.,  for  repeated  favors  in  the  course 
of  its  preparation. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

PAGE. 
Introductory,  ........  9 

CHAPTER  II. 

First  discovery,  1512  to  1565. — Juan  Ponce  de  Leon.     .  .12 

CHAPTER  III. 

Ribault,  Laudonniere,  and  Menendez — settlements  of  the  Huguenots,  and 
foundation  of  St.  Augustine.— 1562— 1565— 1568.          .  15 

CHAPTER  IV. 

The  attack  on  Fort  Caroline. — 1565.       .  .       28 

CHAPTER  V. 

Escape  of  Laudonniere  and  others  from  Fort  Caroline — Adventures  of 


the  fugitives.    . 


86 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Site  of  Fort  Caroline,  afterwards  called  San  Matteo.  .       51 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Menendez's  return  to  St.  Augustine — Shipwreck  of  Ribault — Massacre  of 
part  of  his  command. — A.  D.  1565. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Fate  of  Ribault  and  his  followers— Bloody  massacre  at  Matanzae.— 1565,  76 


8  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

PAGE. 

Fortifying  of  St.  Augustine — Disaffections  and  mutinies — Approval  of 
Menendez'  acts  by  king  of  Spain.— 1565— 1568.      .  91 

CHAPTER  X. 

The  notable  revenge  of  Dominic  de  Gourgues — Return  of  Menendez — 

Indian  Mission.— 1568.        .  102 

CHAPTER  XL 

Sir  Francis  Drake's  attack  upon  St.  Augustine — Establishment  of  mis 
sions — Massacre  of  missionaries  at  St.  Augustine. — 1586 — 1638.          Ill 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Subjection  of  the  Apalachian   Indians — Construction  of  the  fort,  sea 

wall,  <fcc.— 1638— 1700.  121 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

Attack  on  St.  Augustine  by  Gov.  Moore  of  South  Carolina — Difficulties 

with  the  Georgians.— 1702— 1732.  .       131 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Siege  of  St.  Augustine  by  Oglethorpe. — 1732 — 1740.         .  .  141 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Completion  of  the  castle — Descriptions  of  St.  Augustine  a  century  ago — 

English  occupation  of  Florida.— 1755— 1763— 1783.  .       155 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Re-cession  of  Florida  to  Spain — Erection  of  the  Parish  Church — Change 

of  flags.— 1783— 1821.    .  .   •  173 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

Transfer  of  Florida  to  the  United  States — American  occupation — Ancient 

buildings,  &c.      .  .  184 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Present  appearance  of  St.  Augustine,  as  given  by  the  author  of  Thano- 

topsis — Its  climate  and  salubrity.  190 


ILLUST  RATIO  N>S. 


PALI: 

I.'VIKW  OF  PUBLIC  SQUARE,  ST.   AUGUSTINE,  l-'i-ontispi. •<•«•. 

2.  MAP  OF  FLORIDA  IN   1565,       .                          .  '•' 

3.  FORT  CAROLINE,  1564, 

4.  ENTRANCE  OF  ST.  JOHN'S  Rivi.r.,  ••' 

5.  MKSKNDKZ,  FOUNDER  OF  ST.  AIMUJSTINE,   . 

6.  SPANISH  COAT  OF  ARMS  OVER  ENTRANCE  TO  FORT  .MARION,  lt'«l 

7.  CITY  GATES.  19() 


HISTORY  AND  ANTIQUITIES 


OK    THE    CITY    OF 


ST.  AUGUSTINE,  FLORIDA, 


CHAPTEE  I. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

THE  Saint  Augustine  of  the  present  and  the  St. 
Augustine  of  the  past,  are  in  striking  contrast. 

We  see,  to-day,  a  town  less  in  population  than 
hundreds  of  places  of  but  few  months'  existence, 
dilapidated  in  its  appearance,  with  the  stillness  of 
desolation  hanging  over  it,  its  waters  undisturbed 
except  by  the  passing  canoe  of  the  fisherman,  its- 
streets  unenlivened  by  busy  traffic,  and  at  mid-day 
it  might  be  supposed  to  have  sunk  under  the  en 
chanter's  wand  into  an  almost  eternal  sleep. 

With  no  participation  in  the  active  schemes  of  life, 
and  no  hopes  for  the  future ;  with  no  emulation,  and 
no  feverish  visions  of  future  greatness ;  with  no 
corner  lots  on  sale  or  in  demand ;  with  no  stocks, 
save  those  devoted  to  disturbers  of  the  public  peace  ; 
with  no  excitements  and  no  events ;  a  quiet,  undis 
turbed,  dreamy  vision  of  still  life  surrounds  its  walls, 
and  creates  a  sensation  of  entire  repose,  pleasant  or 
otherwise,  as  it  falls  upon  the  heart  of  the  weary 
2 


10  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

wanderer  sick  of  life's  busy  bustle,  or  upon  the 
restless  niiud  of  liiin  wlio  looks  to  nothing  as  life 
except  perpetual,  unceasing  action  ;  the  one  rejoicing 
in  its  rest,  the  other  chafing  under  its  monotony. 
And  yet,  about  the  old  city  there  clings  a  host  of 
historic  associations,  which  throw  around  it  a  charm 
which  few  can  fail  to  feel. 

Its  life  is  in  its  past ;  and  when  we  recall  the  fact 
that  it  was  the  first  permanent  settlement  of  the 
white  man,  by  more  than  forty  years,  in  this  con 
federacy  ;  that  here  for  the  first  time,  isolated  within 
the  shadows  of  the  primeval  forest,  the  civilization 
of  the  Old  World  made  its  abiding  place,  where  all 
was  new,  and  wild,  and  strange ;  that  this  now  so 
insignificant  place  was  the  key  of  an  empire  ;  that 
upon  its  fate  rested  the  destiny  of  a  nation  ;  that  its 
occupation  or  retention  decided  the  fate  of  a  people ; 
that  it  was  itself  a  vice-provincial  court,  boasted  of 
its  adelantados,  men  of  the  first  mark  and  note,  of  its 
Royal  Exchequer,  its  public  functionaries,  its  brave 
men  at  arms  ;  that  its  proud  name,  conferred  by  its 
monarch,  "  La  siemprefiel  C'liidad  de  San  August! n" 
—The  ever  faithful  City  of  St.  Augustine, — stood  out 
upon  the  face  of  history ;  that  here  the  cross  was 
first  planted ;  that  from  the  Papal  throne  itself 
rescripts  were  addressed  to  its  governors ;  that  the 
first  great  efforts  at  christianizing  the  fierce  tribes 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTIXE,    FLORIDA.  11 

of  America  proceeded  from  tins  spot ;  that  the  mar 
tyr's  blood  was  first  here  shed  ;  that  within  these 
quiet  walls  the  din  of  arms,  the  noise  of  battle,  and 
the  fierce  cry  of  assaulting  columns,  have  been 
heard  ; — Who  will  not  then  feel  that  we  stand  on 
historic  ground,  and  that  an  interest  attaches  to  the 
annals  of  this  ancient  city  far  more  than  is  possessed 
by  mere  brick  and  mortar,  rapid  growth,  or  unwont 
ed  prosperity  ?  Moss-grown  and  shattered,  it  appeals 
to  our  instinctive  feelings  of  reverence  for  antiquity ; 
and  we  feel  desirous  to  know  the  history  of  its 
earlier  days. 


12  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 


CHAPTER    II. 

FIRST  DISCOVERY,  1512,  TO  1565.— JUAN  PONCE  DE  LEON. 

AMOKG  the  sturdy  adventurers  of  the  sixteenth 
century  who  sought  both  fame  and  fortune  in  the  • 
path  of  discovery,  was  Ponce  de  Leon,  a  companion 
of  Columbus  on  his  second  voyage,  a  veteran  and 
bold  mariner,  who,  after  a  long  and  adventurous 
life,  feeling  the  infirmities  of  a^e  and  the  shadows  of 

O  o 

the  decline  of  life  hanging  over  him,  willingly 
credited  the  tale  that  in  this,  the  beautiful  land  of 
his  imagination,  there  existed  a  fountain  whose 
waters  could  restore  youth  to  palsied  age,  and  beauty 
to  efface  the  marks  of  time. 

The  story  ran  that  far  to  the  north  there  existed 
a  land  abounding  in  gold  and  in  all  manner  of 
desirable  things,  but,  above  all,  possessing  a  river 
and  springs  of  so  remarkable  a  virtue  that  their 
waters  would  confer  immortal  youth  on  whoever 
bathed  in  them  ;  that  upon  'a  time,  a  considerable 
expedition  of  the  Indians  of  Cuba  had  departed 
northward,  in  search  of  this  beautiful  country  and 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  13 

these  waters  of  immortality,  who  had  never  returned, 
and  who,  it  was  supposed,  were  in  a  renovated  state, 
still  enjoying  the  felicities  of  the  happy  land. 

Furthermore,  Peter  Martyr  affirms,  in  his  second 
decade,  addressed  to  the  Pope,  "that  among  the 
islands  on  the  north  side  of  Hispaniola,  there  is  one 
about  three  hundred  and  twenty-five  leagues  distant, 
as  they  say  which  have  searched  the  same,  in  the 
which  is  a  continual  spring  of  running  water,  of 
such  marvelous  virtue  that  the  water  thereof  being 
drunk,  perhaps  with  some  diet,  maketh  old  men 
young  again.  And  here  I  must  make  protestation 
to  your  Holiness  not  to  think  this  to  be  said  lightly, 
or  rashly  ;  for  they  have  so  spread  this  rumor  for  a 
truth  throughout  all  the  court,  that  not  only  all  the 
people,  but  also  many  of  them  whom  wisdom  or 
fortune  hath  divided  from  the  common  sort,  think  it 
to  be  true."  *  Thoroughly  believing  in  the  verity  of 
this  pleasant  account,  this  gallant  cavalier  fitted  out 
an  expedition  from  Porto  Rico,  and  in  the  progress 
of  his  search  came  upon  the  coast  of  Florida,  on 
Easter  Monday,  1512,  supposing  then,  and  for  a  long 


*  The  fountain  of  youth  is  a  very  ancient  fable;  and  the  reader  will  be 
reminded  of  the  amusing  story  of  the  accomplishment  of  this  miracle  told 
in  Hawthorne's  Twice  Told  Tale?,  and  of  the  marvelous  effects  produced 
by  imbibing  this  celebrated  spring  water. 


14  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

period  afterwards,  that  it  was  an  island.  Partly  in 
consequence  of  the  bright  spring  verdure  and  flowery 
plains  that  met  his  eye,  and  the  magnificence  of  the 
magnolia,  the  bay,  and  the  laurel,  and  partly  in 
honor  of  the  day,  Pascua  Florida,  or  Palm  Sunday, 
and  reminded,  probably,  of  its  appropriateness  by 
the  profusion  of  the  cabbage  palms  near  the  point 
of  his  landing,  he  gave  to  the  country  the  name  of 
Florida. 

On  the  3d  of  April,  1512,  three  hundred  and 
forty-five  years  ago,  he  landed  a  few  miles  north  of 
St.  Augustine,  and  took  possession  of  the  country 
for  the  Spanish  crown.  He  found  the  natives  fierce 
and  implacable  ;  and  after  exploring  the  country  for 
some  distance  around,  and  trying  the  virtue  of  all 
the  streams,  and  growing  neither  younger  nor  hand 
somer,  he  left  the  country  without  making  a  perman 
ent  settlement. 

The  subsequent  explorations  of  Xarvaez,  in  1526, 
and  of  De  Soto,  in  1539,  were  made  in  another  por 
tion  of  our  State,  and  do  not  bear  immediately  upon 
the  subject  of  our  investigation,  although  forming  a 
most  interesting  portion  of  our  general  history. 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  15 


CHAPTER  III. 


RIBAULT,    LAUDONNIERE,    AND   MEXENDEZ— SETTLEMENTS    oF 
THE  HUGUENOTS,  AND  FOUNDATION  OF  ST.  AUGUSTINE. 

1562—1505—1568. 

THE  settlement  of  Florida  had  its  origin  in  the 
religious  troubles  experienced  by  the  Huguenots 
under  Charles  IX.  in  France. 

Their  distinguished  leader,  Admiral  Coligny,  as 
early  as  1555  projected  colonies  in  America,  and 
sent  an  expedition  to  Brazil,  which  proved  unsuccess 
ful.  Having  procured  permission  from  Charles  IX. 
to  found  a  colony  in  Florida ;  a  designation  which 
embraced  in  rather  an  indefinite  manner  the  whole 
country  from  the  Chesapeake  to  the  Tortugas,  he 
sent  an  expedition  in  1562  from  France,  under  com 
mand  of  Jean  Eibault,  composed  of  many  young  men 
of  good  family.  They  first  landed  at  the  St.  John's 
Elver,  where  they  erected  a  monument,  but  finally 
established  a  settlement  at  Port  Royal,  South  Caro 
lina,  and  erected  a  fort.  After  some  months,  how 
ever,  in  consequence"  of  dissensions  among  the  officers 


16  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

of  the  garrison,  and  difficulties  with  the  Indians,  this 
settlement  was  abandoned. 

In  1564  another  expedition  came  out  under  the 
command  of  Rene  de  Laudonniere,  and  made  their 
first  landing  at  the  River  of  Dolphins,  being  the 
present  harbor  of  St.  Augustine,  and  so  named  by 
them  in  consequence  of  the  great  number  of  Dol 
phins  (Porpoises)  seen  by  them  at  its  mouth.  They 
afterwards  coasted  to  the  north,  and  entered  the 
River  St.  Johns,  called  by  them  the  River  May. 

Upon  an  examination  of  this  river  Laudonuiere 
concluded  to  establish  his  colony  on  its  banks ;  and 
proceeding  about  two  leagues  above  its  month,  built 
a  fort  upon  a  pleasant  hill  of  "  mean  height "  which,  in 
honor  of  his  sovereign,  he  named  Fort  Caroline. 

The  colonists  after  a  few  months  were  reduced  to 
great  distress,  and  were  about  taking  measures  to 
abandon  the  country  a  second  time,  when  Ribault 
arrived  with  reinforcements. 

It  is  supposed  that  intelligence  of  these  expedi 
tions  was  communicated  by  the  enemies  of  Coligny 
to  the  court  of  Spain. 

Jealousy  of  the  aggrandizement  of  the  French  in 
the  New  World,  mortification  for  their  own  unsuc 
cessful  efforts  in  that  quarter,  and  a  still  stronger 
motive  of  hatred  to  the  faith  of  the  Huguenot, 
induced  the  bigoted  Philip  II.  of  Spain,  to  dispatch 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  17 

Pedro  Menendez  de  Aviles,  a  brave,  bigoted,  and 
remorseless  soldier,  to  drive  out  the  French  colony, 
and  take  possession  of  the  country  for  himself. 

The  compact  made  between  the  king  and  Menen 
dez  was,  that  he  should  furnish  one  galleon  com 
pletely  equipped,  and  provisions  for  a  force  of  six 
hundred  men  ;  that  he  should  conquer  and  settle 
the  country.  He  obligated  himself  to  carry  one  hun 
dred  horses,  two  hundred  horned  cattle,  four  hun 
dred  hogs,  four  hundred  sheep  and  some  goats,  and 
five  hundred  slaves  (for  which  he  had  a  permission 
free  of  duties),  the  third  part  of  which  should  be 
men,  for  his  own  service  and  that  of  those  who  went 
with  him,  to  aid  in  cultivating  the  land  and  building. 
That  he  should  take  twelve  priests,  and  four  fathers 
of  the  Jesuit  order.  He  was  to  build  two  or  three 
towns  of  one  hundred  families,  and  in  each  town 
should  build  a  fort  according  to  the  nature  of  the 
country.  He  was  to  have  the  title  of  Adelantado  of 
the  country,  as  also  to  be  entitled  a  Marquis  and  his 
heirs  after  him,  to  have  a  tract  of  land,  receive  a 
salary  of  2000  ducats,  a  percentage  of  the  royal 
duties,  and  have  the  freedom  of  all  the  other  ports 
of  New  Spain.* 

His  force  consisted,  at  starting,  of  eleven  sail  of 

*  Barcia  Ensayo,  Cron.  66. 


13  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

vessels  with  two  thousand  .and  six  hundred  men ; 

but,  owing  to  storms  and  accidents,  not  more  than 
one  half  arrived.  He  came  upon  the  coast  on  the 
28th  August,  1565,  shortly  after  the  arrival  of  the 
fleet  of  Ribault.  On  the  Yth  day  of  September 
Menendez  cast  anchor  in  the  River  of  Dolphins,  the 
harbor  of  St.  Augustine.  He  had  previously  dis 
covered  and  given  chase  to  some  of  the  vessels  of 
Ribault,  off  the  mouth  of  the  River  May.  The  Indian 
village  of  Selooe  then  stood  upon  the  site  of  St. 
Augustine,  and  the  landing  of  Menendez  was  upon 
the  spot  where  the  city  of  St.  Augustine  now  stands. 

Fray  Francisco  Lopez  de  Mendoza,  the  Chaplain 
of  the  Expedition,  thus  chronicles  the  disembarkation 
and  attendant  ceremonies  : — 

"  On  Saturday  the  8th  day  of  September,  the  day 
of  the  nativity  of  our  Lady,  the  General  disem 
barked,  with  numerous  banners  displayed,  trumpets 
and  other  martial  music  resounding,  and  amid 
salvos  of  artillery. 

"  Carrying  a  cross,  I  proceeded  at  the  head,  chant 
ing  the  hymn  Te  Deum  Laudamus.  The  General 
inarched  straight  up  to  the  cross,  together  with  all 
those  who  accompanied  him  ;  and,  kneeling,  they  all 
kissed  the  cross.  A  great  number  of  Indians  looked 
upon  these  ceremonies,  and  imitated  whatever  they 
saw  done.  Thereupon  the  General  took  possession 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  10 

of  the  country  in  the  name  of  his  Majesty.  All  the 
officers  then  took  an  oath  of  allegiance  to  him,  as 
their  general  and  as  adelantado  of  the  whole 
country." 

The  name  of  St.  Augustine  was  given,  in  the  usual 
manner  of  the  early  voyagers,  because  they  had  ar 
rived  upon  the  coast  on  the  day  dedicated  in  their 
calendar  to  that  eminent  saint  of  the  primitive 
church,  revered  alike  by  the  good  of  all  ages  for  his 
learning  and  piety. 

The  first  troops  who  landed,  says  Mendoza,  were 
well  received  by  the  Indians,  who  gave  them  a  large 
mansion  belonging  to  the  chief,  situated  near  the 
banks  of  the  river.  The  engineer  officers  immediately 
erected  an  entrenchment  of  earth,  and  a  ditch  around 
this  house,  with  a  slope  made  of  earth  and  fascines, 
these  being  the  only  means  of  defense  which  the 
country  presents ;  for,  says  the  father  with  surprise, 
"  there  is  not  a  stone  to  be  found  in  the  whole 
country."  They  landed  eighty  cannon  from  the 
ships,  of  which  the  lightest  weighed  two  thousand 
five  hundred  pounds. 

But  in  the  mean  time  Menendez  had  by  no  means 
forgotten  the  errand  upon  which  he  principally  came ; 
and  by  inquiries  of  the  Indians  he  soon  learned  the 
position  of  the  French  fort  and  the  condition  of  its 
defenders.  Impelled  by  necessity,  Laudomriere  had 


20  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

been  forced  to  seize  from  the  Indians  food  to  sup 
port  his  famished  garrison,  and  had  thus  incurred 
their  enmity,  which  was  soon  to  produce  its  sad 
results. 

The  Spaniards  numbered  about  six  hundred 
combatants,  and  the  French  about  the  same ;  but 
arrangements  had  been  made  for  further  accessions 
to  the  Spanish  force,  to  be  drawn  from  St.  Domingo 
and  Havana,  and  these  were  daily  expected. 

It  was  the  habit  of  those  days,  to  devolve  almost 
every  event  upon  the  ordering  of  a  special  providence ; 
and  each  nation  had  come  to  look  upon  itself  almost 
in  the  light  of  a  peculiar  people,  led  like  the  Israelites 
of  old  by  signs  and  wonders  ;  and  as  in  their  own 
view  all  their  actions  were  directed  by  the  design  of 
advancing  God's  glory  as  well  as  their  own  purposes, 
so  the  blessing  of  Heaven  would  surely  accompany 
them  in  all  their  undertakings. 

So  believed  the  crusaders  on  the  plains  of  Palestine  ; 
so  believed  the  conquerors  of  Mexico  and  Peru  ;  so 
believed  the  Puritan  settlers  of  New  England  (alike 
in  their  Indian  wars  and  their  oppressive  social 
polity)  ;  and  so  believed,  also,  the  followers  of 
Menendez  and  of  Ribault ;  and  in  this  simple  and 
trusting  faith,  the  worthy  chaplain  gives  us  the  fol 
lowing  account  of  the  miraculous  escape  and  deliver 
ance  of  a  portion  of  the  Spanish  fleet :— 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  21 

"  God   and    his   Holy   Mother    have    performed 
another  great  miracle  in  our  favor.     The  day  follow 
ing  the  landing  of  the  General  in  the  fort,  he   said 
to  us  that  he  was  very  uneasy,  because  his  galley 
and  another  vessel  were  at  anchor,  isolated  and  a 
league  at  sea,  being  unable  to  enter  the  port  on  ac 
count  of  the  shallowness  of  the  water,  and  that  he 
feared  that  the  French  might  come  and  capture  or 
maltreat  them.     As  soon  as  this  idea  came  to  him 
he  departed,  with  fifty  men,  to  go  on  board  of  his 
galleon.      He  gave  orders  to  three  shallops  which 
were  moored  in  the  river  to  go  out  and  take  on 
board  the  provisions  and   troops   which   were   on 
board  the  galleon.     The  next  day,  a  shallop  having 
gone  out  thither,  they  took  on  board  as  much  of  the 
provisions  as  they  could,  and  more  than  a  hundred 
men  who  were  in  the  vessel,  and  returned  towards 
the  shore ;  but  half  a  league  before  arriving  at  the 
bar  they  were  overtaken  by  so   complete  a  calm 
that  they  were  unable  to  proceed  further,  and  there 
upon  cast  anchor  and  passed  the  night  in  that  place. 
The  day  following  at  break  of  day  they  raised  anchor 
as  ordered  by  the  pilot,  as  the  rising  of  the  tide  be 
gan  to  be  felt.     When  it  was  fully  light  they  saw 
astern  of  them  at  the  poop  of  the  vessel,  two  French 
ships  which  during  the  night  had  been  in  search  of 


22  THE    HISTORY    AXD    ANTIQUITIES 

them.  The  enemy  arrived  with  the  intention  of 
making  an  attack  upon  us.  The  French  made  all 
haste  in  their  movements,  for  we  had  no  arms  on 
board,  and  had  only  embarked  the  provisions.  When 
day  appeared,  and  our  people  discovered  the  French, 
they  addressed  their  prayers  to  our  Lady  of  Bon 
Secours  d1  Utrera,  and  supplicated  her  to  grant  them 
a  little  wind,  for  the  French  were  already  close  up 
to  them.  They  say  that  Our  Lady  descended,  her 
self,  upon  the  vessel ;  for  the  wind  freshened  and 
blew  fair  for  the  bar,  so  that  the  shallop  could  enter 
it.  The  French  followed  it ;  but  as  the  bar  has  but 
little  depth  and  their  vessels  were  large,  they  were 
not  able  to  go  over  it,  so  that  our  men  and  the  pro 
visions  made  a  safe  harbor.  When  it  became  still 
clearer  they  perceived  besides  the  two  vessels  of  the 
enemy,  four  others  at  a  distance,  being  the  same 
which  we  had  seen  in  port  the  evening  of  our  ar 
rival.  They  were  well  furnished  w^ith  both  troops 
and  artillery,  and  had  directed  themselves  for  our 
galleon  and  the  other  ship,  which  were  alone  at  sea. 
In  this  circumstance  God  accorded  us  two  favors : 
the  first  was,  that  the  same  evening  after  they  had 
discharged  the  provisions  and  the  troops  I  have 
spoken  of,  at  midnight  the  galleon  and  other  vessel 
put  to  sea  without  being  perceived  by  the  enemy ; 
the  one  for  Spain,  and  the  other  for  Havana  for  the 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTIXE,    FLORIDA.  23 

purpose  of  seeking  the  fleet  winch  was  there ;  and  in 
this  way  neither  was  taken. 

"  The  second  favor,  by  which  God  rendered  us  a 
still  greater  service,  was  that  on  the  day  following 
the  one  I  have  described  there  arose  a  storm,  and 
so  great  a  tempest  that  certainly  the  greater  part  of 
the  French  vessels  must  have  been  lost  at  sea ;  for 
they  were  overtaken  upon  the  most  dangerous  coast 
I  have  ever  seen,  and  were  very  close  to  the  shore  ; 
and  if  our  vessels,  that  is,  the  galleon  and  its  consort, 
are  not  shipwrecked,  it  is  because  they  were  already 
more  than  twelve  leagues  off  the  coast,  which  gave 
them  the  facility  of  running  before  the  wind,  and 
maneuvering  as  well  as  they  could,  relying  upon 
the  aid  of  God  to  preserve  them."  * 

Menendez  had  ascertained  from  the  Indians  that 
a  large  number  of  the  French  troops  had  embarked 
on  board  of  the  vessels  which  he  had  seen  off  the 


*  The  Galleon  spoken  of  was  Menendez's  own  flag-ship,  the  El  Pelayo, 
the  largest  vessel  in  his  fleet,  fitted  out  at  his  own  expense,  and  which  had 
brought  four  hundred  men.  lie  had  put  on  board  of  her  a  lieutenant  and 
Borne  soldiers,  besides  fifteen  Lutherans  as  prisoners,  whom  he  was  sending 
home  to  the  Inquisition  at  Seville.  The  orders  to  his  officers  were  to  go  as 
speedily  as  possible  to  the  island  of  Hispaniola,  to  bring  provisions  and  addi 
tional  forces.  Upon  the  passage,  the  Lutheran  prisoners,  with  some  Levantine 
sailors,  rose  upon  the  Spaniards,  killed  the  commander,  and  carried  the 
vessel  into  Denmark.  Menendez  was  much  chagrined  when  he  ascertained 
the  fate  of  his  favorite  galleon,  a  long  period  afterwards. 


24:  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

harbor,  and  lie  had  good  ground  for  believing  that 
these  vessels  would  either  be  cast  helpless  upon  the 
shore,  or  be  driven  off  by  the  tempest  to  such  a  dis 
tance  as  would  render  their  return  for  some  days 
impossible.  He  at  once  conceived  the  project  of 
attacking  the  French  fort  upon  the  river  May,  by 
land. 

A  council  of  war  was  held,  and  after  some  discus 
sion,  for  the  most  part  adverse  to  the  plan  proposed 
by  him,  Menendez  spoke  as  follows  : — "  Gentlemen 
and  Brothers  !  we  have  before  us  now  an  opportunity 
which  if  improved  by  us  will  have  a  happy  result. 
I  am  satisfied  that  the  French  fleet  which  four  days 
since  fled  from  me,  and  has  now  come  to  seek  me, 
has  been  reinforced  with  the  larger  part  of  the  gar 
rison  of  their  fort,  to  which,  nor  to  port,  will  they 
be  able  to  return  for  many  days  according  to  appear 
ances  ;  and  since  they  are  all  Lutherans,  as  we 
learned  before  we  sailed  from  Spain,  by  the  edicts 
which  Jean  Bibault  published  before  embarking,  in 
order  that  no  Catholic  at  the  peril  of  his  life  should 
go  in  his  fleet,  nor  any  Catholic  books  be  taken ; 
and  this  they  themselves  declared  to  us  the  ni^-nt 

v  O 

they  fled  from  us,  and  hence  our  war  must  be  to 
blood  and  fire,  not  only  on  account  of  the  orders 
we  are  under,  but  because  they  have  sought  us  in 
order  to  destroy  us,  that  we  should  not  plant  our 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  25 

holy  religion  in  these  regions,  and  to  establish  their 
own  abominable  and  crazy  sect  among  the  Indians  ; 
so  that  the  more  promptly  we  shall  punish  them,  we 
shall  the  more  speedily  do  a  service  to  our  God  and 
our  king7  and  comply  with  our  conscience  and  our 
duty. 

"  To  accomplish  this,  we  must  choose  five  hund 
red  arquebuse  men  and  pikemen,  and  carry  pro 
visions  in  our  knapsacks  for  eight  days,  divided  into 
ten  companies,  each  one  with  its  standard  and  its 
captain,  and  go  with  this  force  by  land  to  examine 
the  settlements  and  fort  of  our  enemies ;  and  as  no 
one  knows  the  road,  I  will  guide  you  within  two 
points  by  a  mariner's  compass  ;  and  where  we  cannot 
get  along,  we  will  open  a  way  with  our  axes ;  and 
moreover,  I  have  with  me  a  Frenchman  who  has  been 
more  than  a  year  at  their  fort,  and  who  says  he 
knows  the  ground  for  two  leagues  around  the  fort. 

"  If  we  shall  arrive  without  discovery,  it  may  be 
that  falling  upon  it  at  daylight  we  may  take  it,  by 
planting  upon  it  twenty  scaling  ladders,  at  the  cost 
of  fifty  lives.  If  we  are  discovered,  we  can  form  in 
the  shelter  of  the  wood,  which  I  am  assured  is  not 
more  than  a  quarter  of  a  league  distant,  and  plant 
ing  there  ten  standards,  send  forward  a  trumpeter 
requiring  them  to  leave  the  fort  and  the  country, 
and  return  to  their  own  country,  offering  them  ships 
3 


26  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

and  provisions  for  the  voyage.  They  will  imagine 
that  we  have  a  much  greater  army  with  us,  and  they 
may  surrender  ;  and  if  they  do  not,  we  shall  at  least 
accomplish  that  they  will  leave  us  undisturbed  in 
this  our  own  settlement,  and  we  shall  know  the  way, 
so  that  we  may  return  to  destroy  them  the  succeed 
ing  spring." 

After  some  discussion,  it  was  concluded  that  after 
hearing  mass,  they  should  undertake  the  expedition 
on  the  third  day.  Considerable  opposition  was 
manifested  on  the  part  of  the  officers ;  but,  with  a 
consummate  knowledge  of  human  nature,  the  ade- 
lantado  got  up  the  most  splendid  dinner  in  his  power, 
and  invited  his  recreant  officers  to  the  repast,  and 
dexterously  appealed  to  their  fears,  as  well  as  their 
pride,  and  overcame  their  reluctance  to  undertake 
the  unknown  dangers  of  a  first  march  through  Florida 
at  a  wet  season,  an  actual  acquaintance  with  which 
would  still  more  have  dampened  their  ardor. 

The  troops  assembled  promptly  upon  the  day 
appointed,  at  the  sound  of  the  trumpet,  the  fife  and 
the  drum,  and  they  all  went  to  hear  mass,  except 
Juan  de  Vicente,  who  said  he  had  a  disorder  of  the 
stomach,  and  in  his  leg;  and  when  some  friends 
wished  to  urge  his  coming,  he  replied, — "  I  vow  to 
God,  that  I  will  wait  until  the  news  comes  that  our 
force  is  entirely  cut  off,  when  we  who  remain  will 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  27 

embark  in  our  three  vessels,  and  go  to  the  Indies, 
where  there  will  be  no  necessity  of  our  all  perishing 
like  beasts." 

This  Juan  Vicente  seems  to  have  been  an  apt 
specimen  of  a  class  of  croakers  not  peculiar  to  any 
age  or  country.  Of  his  further  history,  the  chronicle 
gives  other  instances  of  a  similar  spirit ;  and  his  sole 
claim  to  immortality,  like  that  of  many  an  other,  is 
founded  upon  his  impudence. 


28  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 


CHAPTER    IV. 

THE  ATTACK  OX  FORT  CAROLINE.— 1565. 

THE  troops,  having  heard  mass,  marched  out  in 
order,  preceded  by  twenty  Biscayans  and  Asturians 
having  as  their  captain  Martin  de  Ochoa,  a  leader 
of  great  fidelity  and  bravery,  furnished  with  axes  to 
open  a  road  where  they  could  not  get  along.  At 
this  moment  there  arrived  two  Indians,  who  said 
that  they  had  been  at  the  French  fort  six  days 
before,  and  who  "  seemed  like  angels  "  to  the  sol 
diers,  sent  to  guide  their  march.  Halting  for  refresh 
ment  and  rest  wherever  suitable  places  could  be 
found,  and  the  Adelantado  always  with  the  van 
guard,  in  four  days  they  reached  the  vicinity  of  the 
fort,  and  came  up  within  less  than  a  quarter  of  a 
league  of  it,  concealed  by  a  grove  of  pine  trees.  It 
rained  heavily,  and  a  severe  storm  prevailed.  The 
place  where  they  had  halted  was  a  very  bad  one, 
and  very  marshy  ;  but  he  decided  to  stop  there,  and 
went  back  to  seek  the  rearguard,  lest  they  might 
lose  the  way. 


FORT    CAROL  LN  E. 


OF     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  29 

About  ten  at  night  the  last  of  the  troops  arrived, 
very  wet  indeed,  for  there  had  been  much  rain 
during  the  four  days  ;  they  had  passed  marshes  with 
the  water  rising  to  their  waists,  and  every  night 
there  was  so  great  a  flood  that  they  were  in  great 
danger  of  losing  their  powder,  their  match-fire,  and 
their  biscuit ;  and  they  became  desperate,  cursing 
those  who  had  brought  them  there,  and  themselves 
for  coming. 

Menendez  pretended  not  to  hear  their  complaints, 
not  daring  to  call  a  council  as  to  proceeding  or 
returning,  for  both  officers  and  soldiers  went  forward 
very  inquietly.  Remaining  firm  in  his  own  resolve, 
two  hours  before  dawn  he  called  together  the  Master 
of  the  Camp  and  the  Captains,  to  whom  he  said  that 
during  the  whole  night  he  had  sought  of  God  and 
his  most  Holy  Mother,  that  they  would  favor  him 
and  instruct  him  what  he  should  do,  most  advan 
tageous  for  their  holy  service  ;  and  he  was  persuaded 
that  they  had  all  done  the  same.  "  But  now,  Gentle 
men,"  he  proceeded,  "  we  must  make  some  determin 
ation,  finding  ourselves  exhausted,  lost,  without 
ammunition  or  provisions,  and  without  the  hope  of 
relief." 

Some  answered  very  promptly,  "Why  should 
they  waste  their  time  in  giving  reasons  ?  for,  unless 
they  returned  quickly  to  St.  Augustine,  they  would 


30  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

be  reduced  to  eating  palmettos  ;*  and  the  longer 
they  delayed,  the  greater  trouble  they  would  have." 

The  Adelantado  said  to  them  that  what  they  said 
seemed  very  reasonable,  but  he  would  ask  of  them 
to  hear  some  reasons  to  the  contrary,  without  being 
offended.  He  then  proceeded — after  having  smoothed 
down  their  somewhat  ruffled  dispositions,  consider 
ably  disturbed  by  their  first  experience  in  encounter 
ing  the  hardships  of  such  a  march — to  show  them  that 
the  danger  of  retreat  was  then  greater  than  an  ad 
vance  would  be,  as  they  would  lose  alike  the  respect 
of  their  friends  and  foes.  That  if,  on  the  contrary, 
they  attacked  the  fort,  whether  they  succeeded  in 
taking  it  or  not,  they  would  gain  honor  and  reputa 
tion. 

Stimulated  by  the  speech  of  their  General,  they 
demanded  to  be  led  to  the  attack,  and  the  arrange 
ments  for  the  assault  were  at  once  made.  Their 
French  prisoner  was  placed  in  the  advance  ;  but  the 
darkness  of  the  night  and  the  severity  of  the  storm 
rendered  it  impossible  to  proceed,  and  they  halted 
in  a  marsh,  with  the  water  up  to  their  knees,  to 
await  daylight. 

At  dawn,  the  Frenchman  recognized  the  country, 


A  low  palm,  bearing  an  oily  berry. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  31 

and  the  place  where  they  were,  and  where  stood  the 
fort ;  upon  which  the  Adelantado  ordered  them  to 
march,  enjoining  upon  all,  at  the  peril  of  their  lives, 
to  follow  him  ;  and  coming  to  a  small  hill,  the 
Frenchman  said  that  behind  that  stood  the  fort, 
about  three  bow-shots  distant,  but  lower  down,  near 
the  river.  The  General  put  the  Frenchman  into  the 
custody  of  Castaneda.  He  went  up  a  little  higher, 
and  saw  the  river  and  one  of  the  houses,  but  he  was 
not  able  to  discover  the  fort,  although  it  was  ad 
joining  them ;  and  he  returned  to  Castaneda,  with 
whom  now  stood  the  Master  of  the  Camp  and  Ochoa, 
and  said  to  them  that  he  wished  to  go  lower  down, 
near  to  the  houses  which  stood  behind  the  hill,  to 
see  the  fortress  and  the  garrison,  for,  as  the  sun  was 
now  up,  they  could  not  attack  the  fort  without  a 
reconnoisance.  This  the  Master  of  the  Camp  would 
not  permit  him  to  do,  saying  this  duty  appertained 
to  him  ;  and  he  went  alone  with  Ochoa  near  to  the 
houses,  from  whence  they  discovered  the  fort ;  and 
returning  with  their  information,  they  came  to  two 
paths,  and  leaving  the  one  by  which  they  came,  they 
took  the  other.  The  Master  of  the  Camp  discovered 
his  error,  coming  to  a  fallen  tree,  and  turned  his 
face  to  inform  Ochoa,  who  was  following  him ;  and 
as  they  turned  to  seek  the  right  path,  he  stopped  in 
advance,  and  the  sentinel  discovered  them,  who 


32  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

imagined  them  to  be  French ;  but  examining  them 
he  perceived  they  were  unknown  to  him.  He  hailed, 
"  Who  goes  there  ? "  Ochoa  answered,  "  French 
men."  The  sentinel  was  confirmed  in  his  supposition 
that  they  were  his  own  people,  and  approached 
them  ;  Ochoa  did  the  same  ;  but  seeing  they  were 
not  French,  the  sentinel  retreated.  Ochoa  closed 
with  him,  and  with  his  drawn  sword  gave  him  a  cut 
over  the  head,  but  did  not  hurt  him  much,  as  the 
sentinel  fended  off  the  blow  with  his  sword  ;  and  the 
Master  of  the  Camp  coming  up  at  this  moment,  gave 
him  a  thrust,  from  which  he  fell  backwards,  making 
a  loud  outcry.  The  Master  of  the  Camp,  putting 
his  sword  to  his  breast,  threatened  him  with  instant 
death  unless  he  kept  silence.  They  tied  him  there 
upon,  and  took  him  to  the  General,  who,  hearing  the 
noise,  thought  the  Master  of  the  Camp  wras  being 
killed,  and  meeting  with  the  Sergeant-major,  Fran 
cisco  de  Recalde,  Diego  de  Maya,  and  Andres  Lopez 
Patino,  with  their  standards  and  soldiers,  without 
being  able  to  restrain  himself,  he  cried  out,  "  San 
tiago  !  Upon  them  !  Help  of  God,  Victory  !  The 
French  are  destroyed.  The  Master  of  the  Camp  is 
in  their  fort,  and  has  taken  it."  Upon  wrhich,  all 
rushed  forward  in  the  path  without  order,  the 
General  remaining  behind,  repeating  what  he  had 
said  many  times  ;  himself  believing  it  to  be  certain 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  33 

that  the  Master  of  Camp  had  taken  with  him  a  con 
siderable  force,  and  had  captured  the  fort. 

So  great  was  the  joy  of  the  soldiers,  and  such  their 
speed,  that  they  soon  came  up  with  the  Master  of 
the  Camp  and  Ochoa,  who  was  hastening  to  receive 
the  reward  of  carrying  the  good  news  to  the  General 
of  the  capture  of  the  sentinel.  But  the  Master  of 
the  Camp,  seeing  the  spirit  which  animated  the  sol 
diery,  killed  the  sentinel,  and  cried  out  with  a  loud 
voice  to  those  who  were  pressing  forward,  "  Com 
rades  !  do  as  I  do.  God  is  with  us ; "  and  turned, 
running  towards  the  fort,  and  meeting  two  French 
men  on  the  way,  he  killed  one  of  them,  and  Andres 
Lopez  Patino  the  other.  Those  in  the  environs  of 
the  fort,  seeing  this  tragedy  enacted,  set  up  loud 
outcries ;  and  in  order  to  know  the  cause  of  the 
alarm,  one  of  the  French  within  opened  the  postern 
of  the  principal  gate,  which  he  had  no  sooner  done 
than  it  was  observed  by  the  Master  of  the  Camp ; 
and  throwing  himself  upon  him,  he  killed  him,  and 
entered  the  gate,  followed  by  the  most  active  of  his 
followers. 

The  French  awakened  by  the  clamor,  some  dressed, 
others  in  their  night-clothes,  rushed  to  the  doors  of 
their  houses  to  see  what  had  happened ;  but  they 
were  all  killed,  except  sixty  of  the  more  wary,  who 
escaped  by  leaping  the  walls. 


34:  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

Immediately  tlie  standards  of  tlie  Sergeant  Major 
and  of  Diego  Mayo  were  brought  in,  and  set  up  by 
Rodrigo  Troche  and  Pedro  Valdes  Herrera,  with 
two  cavaliers,  at  the  same  moment.  These  being 
hoisted,  the  trumpets  proclaimed  the  victory,  and 
the  bands  of  soldiers  who  had  entered  opened  the 
gates  and  sought  the  quarters,  leaving  no  Frenchman 
alive. 

The  Adelantado  hearing  the  cries,  left  Castaneda 
in  his  place  to  collect  the  people  who  had  not  come 
up,  who  were  at  least  half  the  force,  and  went  him 
self  to  see  if  they  were  in  any  danger.  He  arrived 
at  the  fort  running ;  and  as  he  perceived  that  the 
soldiers  gave  no  quarter  to  any  of  the  French,  he 
shouted,  "  That  at  the  penalty  of  their  lives,  they 
should  neither  wound  nor  kill  any  woman,  cripple, 
or  child  under  fifteen  years  of  age."  By  which 
seventy  persons  were  saved,  the  rest  were  all  killed. 

Renato  de  Laudonniere,  the  Commander  of  the 
fort,  escaped,  with  his  servant  and  some  twenty  or 
thirty  others,  to  a  vessel  lying  in  the  river. 

Such  is  the  Spanish  chronicle,  contained  in  Barcia, 
of  the  capture  of  Fort  Caroline.  Its  details  in  the  main 
correspond  with  the  account  of  Laudonniere,  and  of 
Nicolas  Challeux,  the  author  of  the  letter  printed  at 
Lyons,  in  France,  under  date  of  August,  1566,  by 
Jean  Saugrain.  In  some  important  particulars,  how- 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  35 

ever,  the  historians  disagree.  It  has  been  already 
seen  that  Menendez  is  represented  as  having  given 
orders  to  spare  all  the  women,  maimed  persons,  and 
all  children  under  fifteen  years  of  age.  The  French 
relations  of  the  event,  on  the  contrary,  allege  that 
an  indiscriminate  slaughter  took  place,  and  that 
all  were  massacred  without  respect  to  age,  sex,  or 
condition ;  but  as  this  statement  is  principally  made 
upon  the  authority  of  a  terrified  and  flying  soldier, 
it  is  alike  due  to  the  probabilities  of  the  case,  and 
more  agreeable  to  the  hopes  of  humanity,  to  lessen 
somewhat  the  horrors  of  a  scene  which  has  need  of 
all  the  palliation  which  can  be  drawn  from  the 
slightest  evidences  of  compassion  on  the  part  of  that 
stern  and  bigoted  leader. 

The  Spanish  statement  is  further  confirmed  by 
other  writers,  who  speak  of  a  vessel  being  dispatched 
by  Menendez  subsequently  to  carry  the  survivors  to 
Spain. 


THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 


CHAPTER   V. 

ESCAPE  OF  LAUDONNIERE  AND  OTHERS  FROM  FORT  CAROLINE: 
ADVENTURES  OF  THE  FUGITIVES. 

THE  narratives  of  this  event  are  found  singularly 
full,  there  "being  no  less  than  three  accounts  by  fugi 
tives  from  the  massacre.  The  most  complete  of  these 
is  that  of  Nicolas  de  Challeux,  a  native  of  Dieppe, 
which  was  published  in  the  following  year.  I  have 
largely  transcribed  from  this  quaint  and  curious  nar 
rative,  not  only  an  account  of  the  fullness  of  the  de 
tails,  but  also  for  the  light  it  throws  upon  the  habits 
of  thought  and  modes  of  expression  of  (hat  day, 
when  so  much  was  exhibited  of  an  external  religious 
faith,  and  so  many  were  found  who  would  fight  for 
their  faith  when  they  refused  to  adhere  to  its  require 
ments.  There  are  apparent,  also,  a  close  study  of  the 
Scriptures,  a  great  familiarity  with  its  language,  a 
frequent  use  of  its  illustrations,  and  a  disposition  to 
attribute  all  things,  with  a  reverent  piety,  to  the 
direct  personal  supervision  of  the  Almighty.  With 
the  aid  of  the  map  accompanying  the  succeeding 
chapter,  it  will  not  be  difficult  to  trace  the  perilous 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  37 

route  of  escape  pursued  by  De  Challeux  and  his  com 
panions,  over  obstacles  much  magnified  by  the  terror 
of  the  moment  and  want  of  familiarity  with  the 
country : — 

u  The  number  of  persons  in  the  fort  was  two 
hundred  and  forty,  partly  of  those  who  had  not  re 
covered  from  sea-sickness,  partly  of  artisans  and  of 
women  and  children  left  to  the  care  and  diligence 
of  Captain  Laudonniere,  who  had  no  expectation  that 
it  was  possible  that  any  force  could  approach  by  land 
to  attack  him.  On  which  account  the  guards  had 
withdrawn  for  the  purpose  of  refreshing  themselves 
a  little  before  sunrise,  on  account  of  the  bad  weather 
which  had  continued  during  the  whole  night,  most  of 
our  people  being  at  the  time  in  their  beds  sleeping. 
The  wicket  gate  open,  the  Spanish  force,  having  tra 
versed  forests,  swamps,  and  rivers,  arrived  at  break  of 
day,  Friday,  the  20th  September,  the  weather  very 
stormy,  and  entered  the  fort  without  any  resistance, 
and  made  a  horrible  satisfaction  of  the  rage  and  hate 
they  had  conceived  against  our  nation.  It  was  then 
who  should  best  kill  the  most  men,  sick  and  well, 
wromen  and  little  children,  in  such  manner  that  it  is 
impossible  to  conceive  of  a  massacre  which  could 
equal  this  for  its  barbarity  and  cruelty. 

"Some  of  the  more  active  of  our  people,  jumping 
from  their  beds,  slipped  out  and  escaped  to  the  ves- 


THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

sel  in  the  river.  I  was  myself  surprised,  going  to  my 
duty  with  my  clasp-knife  in  my  hand ;  for  upon 
leaving  my  cabin,  I  met  the  enemy,  and  saw  no 
other  means  of  escape  but  turning  my  back,  and  ma 
king  the  utmost  possible  haste  to  leap  over  the  pali 
sades,  for  I  was  closely  pursued,  step  by  step,  by  a 
pikeman,  and  one  .with  a  partisan  ;  and  I  do  not  know 
how  it  was,  unless  by  the  grace  of  God,  that  my 
strength  was  redoubled,  old  man  as  I  am  and  grey 
headed,  a  thing  which  at  any  other  time  I  could  not 
have  done,  for  the  rampart  was  raised  eight  or  nine 
feet ;  I  then  hastened  to  secrete  myself  in  the  woods, 
and  when  I  was  sufficiently  near  the  edge  of  the 
wood  at  the  distance  of  a  good  bow-shot,  I  turned 
towards  the  fort  and  rested  a  little  time,  finding  my 
self  not  pursued  ;  and  as  from  this  place  all  the  fort, 
even  the  inner-court  was  distinctly  visible  to  me, 
looking  there  I  saw  a  horrible  butchery  of  our  men 
taking  place,  and  three  standards  of  our  enemies 
planted  upon  the  ramparts.  Having  then  lost  all  hope 
of  seeing  our  men  rally,  I  resigned  all  my  senses  to  the 
Lord.  Recommending  myself  to  his  mercy,  grace,  and 
favor,  I  threw  myself  into  the  wood,  for  it  seemed  to 
me  that  I  could  find  no  greater  cruelty  among  the  sav 
age  beasts,  than  that  of  our  enemy  which  I  had  seen 
shown  towards  our  people.  But  the  misery  and  an 
guish  in  which  I  found  myself  then,  straitened  and 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  3U 

oppressed,  seeing  no  longer  any  means  of  safety  upon 
the  earth,  unless  by  a  special  grace  of  our  Lord, 
transcending  any  expectation  of  man,  caused  me  to 
utter  groans  and  sobs,  and  with  a  voice  broken  by 
distress  to  thus  cry  to  the  Lord : 

"  i  O  God  of  our  fathers  and  Lord  of  all  mercy !  who 
hast  commanded  us  to  call  upon  Thee  even  from  the 
depths  of  hell  and  the  shades  of  death,  promising 
forthwith  thy  aid  and  succor !  show  me,  for  the  hope 
which  I  have  in  Thee,  what  course  I  ought  to  take  to 
come  to  the  termination  of  this  miserable  old  age, 
plunged  into  the  gulf  of  grief  and  bitterness  ;  at  least, 
cause  that,  feeling  the  effect  of  Thy  mercy,  and  the 
confidence  which  I  have  conceived  in  my  heart  for 
Thy  promises,  they  may  not  be  snatched  from  me 
through  fear  of  savage  and  furious  wild  beasts  on  one 
hand,  and  of  our  and  Thy  enemies  on  the  other,  who 
desire  the  more  to  injure  us  for  the  memory  of  Thy 
name  which  is  invoked  by  us  than  for  any  other  cause ; 
aid  me,  my  God !  assist  me,  for  I  am  so  troubled  that  I 
can  do  nothing  more.'  And  while  I  was  making  this 
prayer,  traversing  the  wood,  which  was  very  thick 
and  matted  with  briars  and  thorns,  beneath  the 
large  trees  where  there  was  neither  any  road  nor 
path,  scarcely  had  I  trailed  my  way  half  an  hour, 
when  I  heard  a  noise  like  men  weeping  and  groan 
ing  near  me ;  and  advancing  in  the  name  of  God,  and 


40  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

in  the  confidence  of  His  succor,  I  discovered  one  of 
our  people,  named  Sieur  de  la  Blonderie,  and  a  little 
behind  him  another,  named  Maitre  Robert,  well 
known  to  us  all,  because  he  had  in  charge  the  prayers 
at  the  fort.  Immediately  afterwards  we  found  also 
the  servant  of  Sieur  d'  Ully,  the  nephew  of  M.  Le- 
breau,  Master  Jaques  Trusse,  and  many  others ;  and 
we  assembled  and  talked  over  our  troubles,  and  de 
liberated  as  to  what  course  we  could  take  to  save  our 
lives.  One  of  our  number,  much  esteemed  as  being 
very  learned  in  the  lessons  of  Holy  Scripture,  pro 
posed  after  this  manner:  4 Brethren,  we  see  to  what 
extremity  we  are  brought ;  in  whatever  direction  we 
turn  our  eyes,  we  see  only  barbarism.  The  heavens, 
the  earth,  the  sea,  the  forest,  and  men, — in  brief,  no 
thing  favors  us.  How  can  we  know  that  if  we  yield 
to  the  mercy  of  the  Spaniards,  they  will  spare  us  ? 
and  if  they  should  kill  us,  it  will  be  the  suffering  of 
but  a  moment ;  they  are  men,  and  it  may  be  that, 
their  fury  appeased,  they  may  receive  us  upon  some 
terms  ;  and,  moreover,  what  can  we  do  ?  Would  it 
not  be  better  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  men,  than  into 
the  jaws  of  wild  beasts,  or  die  of  hunger  in  a  strange 
land?' 

"After  he  had  thus  spoken,  the  greater  part  of 
our  number  were  of  his  opinion,  and  praised  his 
counsel.  Notwithstanding,  I  pointed  out  the  cruel 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  41 

animosity  still  unappeased  of  our  enemies,  and  that 
it  was  not  for  any  human  cause  of  quarrel,  that  they 
had  carried  out  with  such  fury  their  enterprise,  but 
mainly  (as  would  appear  by  the  notice  they  had 
already  given  us)  because  we  were  of  those  who  were 
reformed  by  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel ;  that  we 
should  be  cowards  to  trust  in  men,  rather  than  in 
God,  who  gives  life  to  his  own  in  the  midst  of  death, 
and  gives  ordinarily  his  assistance  when  the  hopes  of 
men  entirely  fail. 

"  I  also  brought  to  their  minds  examples  from 
Scripture,  instancing  Joseph,  Daniel,  Elias,  and  the 
other  prophets,  as  well  also  the  apostles,  as  St.  Pe 
ter  and  St.  Paul,  who  were  all  drawn  out  of  much 
affliction,  as  would  appear  by  means  extraordinary 
and  strange  to  the  reason  and  judgment  of  men. 
His  arm,  said  I,  is  not  shortened,  nor  in  any  wise  en 
feebled;  his  power  is  always  the  same.  Do  you  not 
recollect,  said  I,  the  flight  of  the  Israelites  before 
Pharaoh?  What  hope  had  that  people  of  escap 
ing  from  the  hands  of  that  powerful  tyrant  ?  He 
had  them,  as  it  were,  under  his  heel.  Before  them 
they  had  the  sea,  on  either  side  inaccessible  moun 
tains. 

"  What  then  ?  He  who  opened  the  sea  to  make 
a  path  for  his  people,  and  made  it  afterwards  to 
swallow  up  his  enemies,  can  not  he  conduct  us  by 
4 


42  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

the  forest  places  of  this  strange  country?  While 
thus  discoursing,  six  of  the  company  followed  out 
the  first  proposition,  and  abandoned  us  to  go  and 
yield  themselves  up  to  our  enemies,  hoping  to  find 
favor  before  them.  But  they  learned,  immediately 
and  by  experience,  what  folly  it  is  to  trust  more  in 
men  than  in  the  promises  of  the  Lord.  For  having 
gone  out  of  the  wood,  as  they  descended  to  the  fort 
they  were  immediately  seized  by  the  Spaniards  and 
treated  in  the  same  fashion  as  the  others  had  been. 
They  were  at  once  killed  and  massacred,  and  then 
drawn  to  the  banks  of  the  river,  where  the  others 
killed  at  the  fort  lay  in  heaps.  "We  who  remained  in 
the  wood  continued  to  make  our  way,  and  drawing 
towards  the  sea,  as  well  as  we  could  judge,  and  as  it 
pleased  God  to  conduct  our  paths  and  to  straiten  our 
course,  we  soon  arrived  at  the  brow  of  a  mountain 
and  from  there  commenced  to  see  the  sea,  but  it  was 
still  at  a  great  distance ;  and  what  was  worse,  the 
road  we  had  to  take  showed  itself  wonderfully  strange 
and  difficult.  In  the  first  place,  the  mountain  from 
which  it  was  necessary  for  us  to  descend,  was  of  such 
height  and  ruggedness,  that  it  was  not  possible  for  a 
person  descending  to  stand  upright ;  and  we  should 
never  have  dared  to  descend  it  but  for  the  hope  we 
had  of  sustaining  ourselves  by  the  branches  of  the 
bushes,  which  were  frequent  upon  the  side  of  the 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  43 

mountain,-  and  to  save  life,  not  sparing  our  hands 
wliich  we  had  all  gashed  up  and  bloody,  and  even 
the  legs  and  nearly  all  the  body  was  torn.  But 
descending  from  the  mountain,  we  did  not  lose  our 
view  of  the  sea,  on  account  of  a  small  wood  which  was 
upon  a  little  hill  opposite  to  us ;  and  in  order  to  go  to 
the  wood  it  was  requisite  that  we  should  traverse  a 
large  meadow,  all  mud  and  quagmire,  covered  with 
briars  and  other  kinds  of  strange  plants ;  for  the  stalk 
was  as  hard  as  wood,  and  the  leaves  pricked  our  feet 
and  our  hands  until  the  blood  came,  and  being  all  the 
while  in  the  water  up  to  the  middle,  which  redoubled 
our  pain  and  suffering.  The  rain  came  down  upon  us 
in  such  manner  from  heaven,  that  we  were  during 
all  that  time  between  two  floods;  and  the  further  we 
advanced  the  deeper  we  found  the  water. 

"  And  then,  thinking  that  the  last  period  of  our 
lives  had  come,  we  all  embraced  each  other,  and 
with  a  common  impulse,  we  commenced  to  sigh  and 
cry  to  the  Lord,  accusing  our  sins  and  recognizing 
the  weight  of  his  judgments  upon  us.  'Alas! 
Lord,'  said  we,  i  what  are  we  but  poor  worms  of 
the  earth  ?  Our  souls  weakened  by  grief,  surrender 
themselves  into  thy  hands.  Oh,  Father  of  Mercy 
and  God  of  Love,  deliver  us  from  this  pain  of  death  ! 
or  if  thou  wilt  that  in  this  desert  we  shall  draw  our 
last  breath,  assist  us  so  that  death,  of  all  things  the 


44-  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

most  terrible,  shall  have  no  advantage  over  us,  but 
that  we  may  remain  firm  and  stable  in  the  sense  of 
thy  favor  and  good-will,  which  we  have  too  often 
experienced  in  the  cause  of  thy  Christ  to  give  way 
to  the  spirit  of  Satan,  the  spirit  of  despair  and  of  dis 
trust  ;  for  if  we  die,  wre  will  protest  now  before  thy 
Majesty,  that  we  would  die  unto  thee,  and  that  if  we 
live  it  may  be  to  recount  thy  wonders  in  the  midst 
of  the  assembly  of  thy  servants.'  Our  prayers 
concluded,  we  inarched  with  great  difficulty  straight 
towards  the  wood,  when  wre  came  to  a  great  river 
which  ran  in  the  midst  of  this  nieadowr ;  the  channel 
was  sufficiently  narrow  but  very  deep,  and  ran  with 
great  force,  as  though  all  the  field  ran  towards  the 
sea.  This  was  another  addition  to  our  anguish,  for 
there  was  not  one  of  our  men  who  would  dare  to 
undertake  to  cross  over  by  swimming.  But  in  this 
confusion  of  our  thoughts,  as  to  what  manner  to  pass 
over,  I  bethought  myself  of  the  wood  which  we  had 
left  behind  us.  After  exhorting  my  comrades  to 
patience  and  a  continued  trust  in  the  Lord,  I  re 
turned  to  the  wood,  and  cut  a  long  pole,  with  the 
good-sized  clasp-knife  which  remained  in  my  hand 
from  the  hour  the  fort  was  taken;  and  I  returned  to 
the  others,  who  awaited  me  in  great  perplexity. 
1  Now,  then,  comrades,'  said  I,  '  let  us  see  if  God, 
by  means  of  this  stick,  will  not  give  us  some  help  to 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  45 

accomplish  our  path.'  Then  we  laid  the  pole  upon 
the  water,  and  each  one  by  turn  taking  hold  of  the 
end  of  the  pole,  carried  it  by  his  side  to  the  midst 
of  the  channel,  when  losing  sight  of  him  we  pushed 
him  with  sufficient  force  to  the  other  bank,  where 
he  drew  himself  out  by  the  canes  and  other  bushes 
growing  along  its  borders ;  and  by  his  example  we 
passed  over,  one  at  a  time ;  but  it  was  not  without 
great  clanger,  and  not  without  drinking  a  great  deal 
of  salt  water,  in  such  manner  that  our  hearts  were 
all  trembling,  and  we  were  as  much  overcome  as 
though  we  had  been  half  drowned.  After  we  had 
come  to  ourselves  and  we  had  resumed  courage, 
moving  on  all  the  time  towards  the  wood,  which  we 
had  remarked  close  to  the  sea,  the  pole  was  not 
even  needed  to  pass  another  creek,  which  gave  us 
not  much  less  trouble  than  the  first ;  but,  by  the 
grace  of  God,  we  passed  it  and  entered  the  wood 
the  same  evening,  where  we  passed  the  night  in 
great  fear  and  trembling,  standing  about  against  the 
trees. 

"  And,  as  much  as  we  had  labored,  even  had  it  been 
more,  we  felt  no  desire  to  sleep  ;  for  what  repose 
could  there  be  to  spirits  in  such  mortal  affright? 
Near  the  break  of  day,  we  saw  a  great  beast,  like  a 
deer,  at  fifty  paces  from  us,  who  had  a  great  head, 
eyes  flaming,  the  ears  hanging,  and  the  higher  parts 


46  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

elevated.  It  seemed  to  us  monstrous,  because  of  its 
gleaming  eyes,  wondrously  large  ;  but  it  did  not  come 
near  to  do  us  any  harm. 

"  The  day  having  appeared,  we  went  out  of  the 
wood  and  returned  towards  the  sea,  in  which  we 
hoped,  after  God,  as  the  only  means  of  saving  our 
lives ;  but  we  were  again  cast  down  and  troubled, 
for  we  saw  before  us  a  country  of  marsh  and  muddy 
quagmires,  full  of  water  and  covered  with  briars, 
like  that  we  had  passed  the  previous  day.  We 
marched  across  this  salt  marsh  ;  and,  in  the  direction 
we  had  to  take,  we  perceived  among  the  briars  a 
body  of  men,  whom  we  at  first  thought  to  be 
enemies,  who  had  gone  there  to  cut  us  off;  but, 
upon  close  observation,  they  seemed  in  as  sad  a 
plight  as  ourselves,  naked  and  terrified ;  and  we  im 
mediately  perceived  that  they  were  our  own  people. 
It  was  Captain  Laudonniere,  his  servant-maid,  Jacques 
Morgues  of  Dieppe  (the  artist),  Francis  Duval  of 
Rouen,  son  of  him  of  the  iron  crown  of  Rouen, 
Niguise  de  la  Cratte,  Nicholas  the  carpenter,  the 
Trumpeter  of  Sieur  Laudonniere,  and  others,  who 
all  together  made  the  number  of  twenty-six  men. 
Upon  deliberating  as  to  what  we  should  do,  two  of 
our  men  mounted  to  the  top  of  one  of  the  tallest 
trees  and  discovered  from  thence  one  of  our  vessels, 
which  was  that  of  Captain  Maillard,  to  whom  they 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  47 

gave  a  signal,  that  he  might  know  that  we  were  in 
want  of  help.  Thereupon  he  came  towards  us  with 
his  small  vessel,  but  in  order  to  reach  the  banks  of 
the  stream,  it  was  necessary  for  us  to  traverse  the 
briars  and  two  other  rivers  similar  to  those  which 
we  passed  the  previous  day ;  in  order  to  accomplish 
which,  the  pole  I  had  cut  the  day  before  was  both 
useful  and  necessary,  and  two  others  which  Sr.  de 
Laudonniere  had  provided ;  and  we  came  pretty  near 
to  the  vessel,  but  our  hearts  failed  us  from  hunger 
and  fatigue,  and  we  should  have  remained  where  we 
were  unless  the  sailors  had  given  us  a  hand,  which 
aid  was  very  opportune ;  and  they  carried  us,  one 
after  the  other,  to  the  vessel,  on  board  of  which  we 
were  all  received  well  and  kindly.  They  gave  us 
bread  and  water,  and  we  began  afterwards,  little  by 
little,  to  recover  our  strength  and  vigor ;  which  was 
a  strong  reason  that  we  should  recognize  the  good 
ness  of  the  Lord,  who  had  saved  us  against  all  hope 
from  an  infinity  of  dangers  and  from  death,  by 
which  we  had  been  surrounded  and  assaulted  from 
all  quarters,  to  render  him  forevermore  our  thanks 
and  praises.  We  thus  passed  the  entire  night  re 
counting  the  wonders  of  the  Lord,  and  consoled  each 
other  in  the  assurances  of  our  safety. 

"  Daylight  having  come,  Jacques  Eibault,  Captain 
of  the  Pearl,  boarded  us  to  confer  with  us  respecting 


48  THE    HISTORY     AND    ANTIQUITIES 

what  was  to  be  done  by  us,  and  what  means  we 
should  take  for  the  safety  of  the  rest  of  our  men 
and  the  vessels.  It  was  then  objected,  the  small 
quantity  of  provisions  which  we  had,  our  strength 
broken,  our  munitions  and  means  of  defense  taken 
from  us,  the  uncertainty  as  to  the  condition  of  our 
Admiral,  and  not  knowing  but  that  he  had  been 
shipwrecked  on  some  coast  a  long  distance  from  us, 
or  driven  to  a  distance  by  the. tempest. 

"  We  thereupon  concluded  that  we  could  do  no 
better  than  return  to  France,  and  were  of  the  opinion 
that  the  company  should  divide  into  two  parts,  the 
one  remaining  on  board  the  Pearl,  and  the  other 
under  charge  of  Captain  Maillard. 

u  On  Friday,  the  twenty-fifth  day  of  the  month  of 
September,  we  departed  from  this  coast,  favored  by 
a  strong  northerly  wind,  having  concluded  to  return 
to  France,  and  after  the  first  day  our  two  ships  were 
so  far  separated  that  we  did  not  again  encounter 
each  other.  We  proceeded  five  hundred  leagues 
prosperously,  when,  one  morning  about  sunrise,  we 
were  attacked  by  a  Spanish  vessel,  which  we  met  as 
well  as  we  could,  and  cannonaded  them  in  such  sort 
that  we  made  them  subject  to  our  disposal,  and  bat 
tered  them  so  that  the  blood  was  seen  to  overrun 
the  scuppers.  We  held  them  then  as  surrendered 
and  defeated ;  but  there  was  no  means  of  grappling 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  4:9 

her,  on  account  of  the  roughness  of  the  sea,  for  in 
grappling  her  there  would  be  danger  of  our  striking 
together,  which  might  have  sunk  us ;  she  also,  satis 
fied  with  the  affair,  left  us,  joyful  and  thanking  God 
that  no  one  of  us  was  wounded  or  killed  in  this 
skirmish  except  our  cook. 

"  The  rest  of  our  passage  was  without  any  rencon- 
ter  with  enemies ;  but  we  were  much  troubled  by 
contrary  winds,  which  often  threatened  to  cast  us  on 
the  coast  of  Spain,  which  would  have  been  the  fin 
ishing  touch  to  our  misfortunes,  and  the  thing  of 
which  we  had  the  greatest  horror.  "We  also  endured 
at  sea  many  other  things,  such  as  cold  and  hunger ; 
for  be  it  understood  that  we,  who  escaped  from  the 
land  of  Florida,  had  nothing  else  for  vestment  or 
equipment,  by  day  or  by  night,  except  our  shirts 
alone,  or  some  other  little  rag,  which  was  a  small 
matter  of  defense  from  the  exposure  to  the  weather ; 
and  what  was  more,  the  bread  which  we  eat,  and  we 
eat  it  very  sparingly,  was  all  spoilt  and  rotten,  as 
well  also  the  water  itself  was  all  noisome,  and  of 
which,  besides,  we  could  only  have  for  the  whole  day 
a  single  small  glass. 

"  This  bad  food  was  the  reason,  on  our  landing,  that 
many  of  us  fell  into  divers  maladies,  which  carried 
off  many  of  the  men  of  our  company ;  and  we  arrived 
at  last,  after  this  perilous  and  lamentable  voyage,  at 


50  THE    HISTORY    AXD    ANTIQUITIES 

Rochelle ;  where  we  were  received  and  treated  very 
humanely  and  kindly  by  the  inhabitants  of  the 
country  and  those  of  the  city,  giving  us  of  their 
means,  to  the  extent  our  necessities  required ;  and 
assisted  by  their  kindness  we  were  each  enabled  to 
return  to  his  own  part  of  the  country."* 

Laudonniere'sf  narrative  speaks  more  of  his  own 
personal  escape ;  and  that  of  Le  Moyne  J  refers  to  this 
description  of  De  Challeux,  as  containing  a  full  and 
accurate  account  of  what  took  place.  Barcia  men 
tions  De  Challeux  very  contemptuously  as  a  carpen 
ter,  who  succeeding  badly  at  his  trade  took  up  that 
of  preaching,  but  does  not  deny  the  truth  of  his 
narrative.  Those  who  separated  from  their  com 
rades  and  threw  themselves  upon  their  enemies' 
mercy,  are  mentioned  by  the  Spanish  writers ;  but 
they  are  silent  as  to  the  treatment  they  received. 

*  Ternaux  Compans.  f  Hakluyt.  ^  Brevis  Narratio. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  51 


CHAPTER   VI. 

SITE  OF  FORT  CAROLINE,  AFTERWARDS  CALLED  SAN  MATTEO. 

IT  might  naturally  be  supposed  that  a  spot  sur 
rounded  with  so  many  thrilling  and  interesting  asso 
ciations,  as  the  scene  of  the  events  we  have  just 
related,  would  have  been  commemorated  either  by 
tradition  or  by  ancient  remains  attesting  its  situation. 
But,  in  truth,  no  recognized  point  now  bears  the  appel 
lation  of  Fort  Caroline,  and  the  antiquary  can  point 
at  this  day  to  no  fosse  or  parapet,  no  crumbling 
bastion,  no  ancient  helm  or  buckler,  no  shattered 
and  corroded  garniture  of  war  mingled  with  the 
bones  of  the  dead,  as  evidencing  its  position. 

A  writer  who  has  himself  done  more  to  rescue 
from  oblivion  the  historical  romance  of  the  South 
than  any  other,*  has  well  said,  "  It  will  be  an  em 
ployment  of  curious  interest,  whenever  the  people 
of  Florida  shall  happen  upon  the  true  site  of  the 
settlement  and  structure  of  Laudonniere,  to  trace 

*  W.  Gilraore  Simms,  Esq. 


52 


THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 


out  in  detail  these  several  localities,  and  fix  tliein 
for  the  benefit  of  posterity.  The  work  is  scarcely 
beyond  the  hammer  and  chisel  of  some  Old  Mortality, 
who  has  learned  to  place  his  affections  and  fix  his 
sympathies  upon  the  achievements  of  the  past." 

"With  a  consciousness  of  our  unfitness  to  establish 
absolutely  a  memorial  so  interesting  as  the  site  of 
Fort  Caroline  must  ever  be,  I  shall  endeavor  to  locate 
its  position,  upon  the  basis  of  reasons  entirely  satis 
factory  to  myself,  and  measurably  so,  I  trust,  to 
others. 

The  account  given  by  Laudonniere  himself,  the 
leader  of  the  Huguenots,  by  whom  Fort  Caroline 
was  constructed,  is  as  follows : — After  speaking  of 
his  arrival  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  which  had 
been  named  the  River  May  by  Ribault,  who  had 
entered  it  on  the  first  day  of  May,  1562,  and  had 
therefore  given  it  that  name,  he  says,  "  Departing 
from  thence,  I  had  not  sailed  three  leagues  up  the 
river,  still  being  followed  by  the  Indians,  crying 
still,  c  aniy,'  c  amy,'  that  is  to  say,  friend,  but  I  dis 
covered  an  hill  of  meane  height,  neare  which  I  went 
on  land,  harde  by  the  fieldes  that  were  sowed  with 
mil,  at  one  corner  whereof  there  was  an  house,  built 
for  their  lodgings  which  keep  and  garde  the  mil. 
#  *  *  #  #  NOW  was  I  determined  to  searche 
out  the  qualities  of  the  hill.  Therefore  I  went  right 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLOEIDA.  53 

to  the  toppe  thereof;  where  we  found  nothing  else 
but  cedars,  palms,  and  bay  trees  of  so  sovereign  odor 
that  Balrne  smelleth  not  more  sweetly.  The  trees 
were  environed  around  about  Avith  vines  bearing 
grapes,  in  such  quantities  that  the  number  would 
suffice  to  make  the  place  habitable.  Besides  the 
fertilitie  of  the  soyle  for  vines,  one  may  see  mesquine 
wreathed  about  the  trees  in  great  quantities.  Touch 
ing  the  pleasure  of  the  place,  the  sea  may  be  seen 
plain  enough  from  it ;  and  more  than  six  great  leagues 
off,  towards  the  River  Belle,  a  man  may  behold  the 
meadows,  divided  asunder  into  isles  and  islets,  enter- 
lacing  one  another.  Briefly,  the  place  is  so  pleasant, 
that  those  which  are  melancholicke,  would  be  inforced 
to  change  their  humour. 

"  Our  fort  was  built  in  form  of  a  triangle ;  the  side 
towards  the  west,  which  was  toward  the  land,  was 
inclosed  with  a  little  trench  and  raised  with  turf 
made  in  the  form  of  a  battlement,  nine  feet  high  ;  the 
other  side,  which  was  towards  the  river,  was  inclosed 
with  a  palisade  of  planks  of  timber,  after  the  manner 
that  Gabions  are  made ;  on  the  south  line,  there  was 
a  kind  of  bastion,  within  which  I  caused  an  house  for 
the  munition  to  be  made.  It  was  all  builded  with 
fagots  and  sand,  saving  about  two  or  three  foote 
high,  with  turfes  whereof  the  battlements  were  made. 
In  the  middest,  I  caused  a  great  court  to  be  made  of 


54:  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

eighteen  paces  long,  and  the  same  in  breadth.  In 
the  middest  whereof,  on  the  one  side,  drawing 
towards  the  south,  I  builded  a  corps  de  garde  and 
an  house  on  the  other  side  towards  the  north.  *  * 
One  of  the  sides  that  inclosed  my  court, 
which  I  made  very  faire  and  large,  reached  unto  the 
grange  of  my  munitions;  and  on  the  other  side, 
towards  the  river,  was  mine  own  lodgings,  round 
which  were  galleries  all  covered.  The  principal 
doore  of  my  lodging  was  in  the  middest  of  the  great 
place,  and  the  other  was  towarde  the  river.  A  good 
distance  from  the  fort  I  built  an  oven." 

Jacob  Le  Moyne,  or  Jacques  Morgues,  as  he  is 
sometimes  called,  accompanied  the  expedition ;  and 
his  Brems  Narratio  contains  two  plates,  representing 
the  commencement  of  the  construction  of  Fort  Car 
oline,  and  its  appearance  when  completed.  The 
latter  represents  a  much  more  finished  fortification 
than  could  possibly  have  been  constructed,  but  may 
be  taken  as  a  correct  outline,  I  presume,  of  its  gen 
eral  appearance. 

Barcia,  in  his  account  of  its  capture,  describes 
neither  its  shape  nor  appearance,  but  mentions  the 
parapet  nine  feet  high,  and  the  munition  house  and 
store  house. 

From  the  account  of  Laudonniere  and  Le  Moyne, 
it  was  situated  near  the  river,  on  the  slope  or  nearly 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  55 

at  the  foot  of  a  hill.*  Barcia  speaks  of  its  being 
behind  a  hill,  and  of  descending  towards  it.  The 
clerical-carpenter,  Challeux,  speaks  of  being  able, 
after  his  escape,  to  look  <Jown  from  the  hill  he  was 
on,  into  the  court  of  the  fort  itself,  and  seeing  the 
massacre  of  the  French.  As  he  was  flying  from  the 
fort  towards  the  sea,  and  along  the  river,  and  as  the 
Spaniards  came  from  a  southeast  direction,  the  fort 
must  have  been  on  the  westerly  side  of  a  hill,  near 
the  river. 

The  distance  is  spoken  of  as  less  than  three  leagues 
by  Laudonniere.  Hawkins  and  Ribault  say,  the  fort 
was  not  visible  from  the  mouth  of  the  river.  It  is 
also  incidentally  spoken  of  in  Barcia  as  being  two 
leagues  from  the  bar.  Le  Challeux,  in  the  narrative 
of  his  escape,  speaks  of  the  distance  as  being  about 
two  leagues.  In  the  account  given  of  the  expedition 
of  De  Gourgues,  it  is  said  to  be,  in  general  terms, 
about  one  or  two  leagues  above  the  forts  afterwards 
constructed  on  each  side  of  the  mouth  of  the  river ; 
and  it  is  also  mentioned  in  De  Gourgues,  that  the 
fort  was  at  the  foot  of  a  hill,  near  the  water,  and 
could  be  overlooked  from  the  hill.  The  distance 
from  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and  the  nature  of  the 
ground  where  the  fort  was  built,  are  thus  made  suf- 

*  Laudonniere  eays,  "joignant  la  montagne" 


56  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

ficiently  definite  to  enable  us  to  seek  a  location  which 
shall  fulfill  both  these  conditions.  It  is  hardly 
necessary  to  remark,  that  there  can  be  no  question 
but  that  the  fort  was  located  on  the  south  or  easterly 
side  of  the  river,  as  the  Spaniards  marched  by  land 
from  St.  Augustine,  in  a  northwesterly  direction  to 
Fort  Caroline. 

The  Kiver  St.  Johns  is  one  of  the  largest  rivers,  in 
point  of  width,  to  be  found  in  America,  and  is  more 
like  an  arm  of  the  sea  than  a  river  ;  from  its  mouth 
for  a  distance  of  fifteen  miles,  it  is  spread  over  exten 
sive  marshes,  and  there  are  few  points  where  the 
channel  touches  the  banks  of  the  river.  At  its 
mouth  it  is  comparatively  narrow,  but  immediately 
extends  itself  over  wide-spread  marshes ;  and  the  first 
headland  or  shore  which  is  washed  by  the  channel 
is  a  place  known  as  St.  John's  Bluff.  Here  the  river 
runs  closely  along  the  shore,  making  a  bold,  deep 
channel  close  up  to  the  bank.  The  land  rises  ab 
ruptly  on  one  side,  into  a  hill  of  moderate  height, 
covered  with  a  dense  growth  of  pine,  cedar,  &c. 
This  hill  gently  slopes  to  the  banks  of  the  river,  and 
runs  off  to  the  southwest,  where,  at  the  distance  of 
a  quarter  of  a  mile,  a  creek  discharges  itself  into  the 
river,  at  a  place  called  the  Shipyard  from  time  im 
memorial. 

I  am  not  aware  that  any  remains  of  Fort  Caroline, 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  57 

or  any  old  remains  of  a  fortress,  have  ever  been  dis 
covered  here;  but  it  must  be  recollected  that  this 
fort  was  constructed  of  sand  and  pine  trees,  and  that 
three  hundred  years  have  passed  away,  with  their 
storms  and  tempests,  their  rains  and  destructive 
influences — a  period  sufficient  to  have  destroyed  a 
work  of  much  more  durable  character  than  sandy 
entrenchments  and  green  pine  stakes  and  timbers. 
Moreover,  it  is  highly  probable,  judging  from  present 
appearances,  that  the  constant  abrasion  of  the  banks 
still  going  on  has  long  since  worn  away  the  narrow 
spot  where  stood  Fort  Caroline.  It  is  also  to  be 
remarked,  that  as  there  is  no  other  hill,  or  high  land, 
or  place  where  a  fort  could  have  been  built,  between 
St.  John's  Bluff  and  the  mouth  of  the  river,  so  it 
is  also  the  fact,  that  there  is  no  point  on  the  south 
side  of  the  river  where  the  channel  touches  high 
land,  for  a  distance  by  water  of  eight  or  ten  miles 
above  St.  John's  Bluff. 

The  accompanying  diagram  and  map  will  illustrate 
this  point  more  fully,  and  starting  at  St.  John's 
Bluff,  the  track  of  the  fugitives,  as  they  crossed  the 
several  creeks,  is  easily  followed,  until  they  reached 
the  vessels  at  the  mouth  of  the  river. 

The  evidence  in  favor  of  the  location  of  Fort  Car 
oline  at  St.  John's  Bluff  is,  I  think,  conclusive  and 
irresistible,  and  accords  in  all  points  with  the  descrip- 
5 


58  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

tions  given  as  to  distance,  topography,  and  points  of 
view. 

It  is  within  the  memory  of  persons  now  living,* 
that  a  considerable  orange  grove  and  somewhat 
extensive  buildings,  which  existed  at  this  place,  then 
called  San  Vicente,  have  been  washed  into  the  river, 
leaving  at  this  day  no  vestiges  of  their  existence. 
It  has  been  occupied  as  a  Spanish  fort  within  fifty 
years ;  yet  so  rapid  has  been  the  work  of  time  and 
the  elements,  that  no  remains  of  such  occupation  are 
now  to  be  seen. 

The  narratives  all  speak  of  the  distance  from  the 
mouth  of  the  river  as  about  two  leagues ;  and  in 
speaking  of  so  short  a  distance  the  probability  of 
exactness  is  much  greater  than  when  dealing  with 
longer  distances. 

As  to  the  spot  itself,  it  presents  all  the  natural 
features  mentioned  by  Laudonniere ;  and  it  requires 
but  a  small  spice  of  enthusiasm  and  romance  that  it 
be  recognized  as  a  "goodlie  and  pleasante  spotte," 
by  those  who  might  like  the  abundance  of  the  wild 
grapes  and  the  view  of  the  distant  salt  meadows, 
with  their  "lies  and  islets,  so  pleasante  that  those 
which  are  inelancholicke  would  be  inforced  to 
change  their  humour." 

*  Col.  T.  D.  Hart ;  Mrs.  James  Smith. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  59 

It  is  but  proper,  however,  to  say,  that  at  a  plan 
tation  known  as  Newcastle  there  is  a  high  range  of 
ground,  and  upon  this  high  ground  the  appearance 
of  an  old  earth- work  of  quadrangular  form;  but 
this  point  is  distant  some  six  leagues  from  the  mouth 
of  the  river,  is  flanked  by  a  deep  bay  or  marsh  to 
the  southeast,  and  the  work  is  on  the  top  of  the  hill 
and  not  at  its  foot,  is  quadrangular  and  not  trian 
gular,  and  is  a  considerable  distance  from  the  water. 
These  earth-works,  I  am  satisfied,  are  Spanish  or 
English  remains  of  a  much  later  period. 


60  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 


CHAPTER    VII. 


MENENDEZ'S  RETURN  TO  ST.  AUGUSTINE— SHIPWRECK  OF  RI- 
BAULT— MASSACRE  OF  PART  OF  HIS  COMMAND— A.  D.  1565. 

AFTEK  an  ineffectual  attempt  to  induce  those  in 
the  small  vessels  of  the  French  to  surrender,  failing 
in  this,  the  General  concluded  to  return  to  St.  Au- 
gtfstine,  and  send  two  of  his  vessels  to  the  mouth  of 
the  river  to  intercept  them. 

Some  of  the  fugitives  from  the  fort  fled  to  the 
Indians ;  and  ten  of  these  were  given  up  to  the 
Spaniards,  to  be  butchered  in  cold  blood,  says  the 
French  account, — to  be  sent  back  to  France,  says  the 
Spanish  chronicle. 

The  24th  September  being  the  day  of  St.  Matthew, 
the  name  of  the  fort  was  changed  to  that  of  San 
Matheo,  by  which  name  it  was  always  subsequently 
called  by  the  Spaniards ;  and  the  name  of  St.  Matthew 
was  also  given  by  them  to  the  river,  now  called  St. 
Johns,  on  which  it  was  situated. 

The  Spaniards  proceeded  at  once  to  strengthen 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  61 

the  fortress,  deepening  and  enlarging  the  ditch,  and 
raised  and  strengthened  the  ramparts  and  walls  in 
such  manner,  says  the  boastful  Mendoza,  "  that  if  the 
half  of  all  France  had  come  to  attack  it,  they  could 
not  have  disturbed  it ;"  a  boast  upon  which  the  easy 
conquest  of  it  by  De  Gourgues,  three  years  subse 
quently,  affords  an  amusing  commentary.  They  also 
constructed,  subsequently,  two  small  forts  at  the 
mouth  of  the  river,  one  on  each  side,  which  proba 
bly  were  located  the  one  at  Batten  Island  and  the 
other  at  Mayport. 

Leaving  three  hundred  soldiers  as  a  garrison  under 
his  son-in-law,  De  Valdez,  Master  of  the  Camp,  who 
was  now  appointed  Governor  of  the  fort,  Menendez 
marched  for  St.  Augustine,  beginning  now  to  feel 
considerable  anxiety  lest  the  French  fleet,  escaping 
from  the  tempest,  might  return  and  visit  upon  his 
own  garrison  at  St.  Augustine,  the  fate  of  Fort  Car 
oline.  He  took  with  him  upon  his  return  but  fifty 
soldiers,  and,  owing  to  the  swollen  waters,  found 
great  difficulty  in  retracing  his  route.  When  within 
a  league  of  St.  Augustine,  he  allowed  one  of  the 
soldiers  to  go  forward  to  announce  his  victory  and 
safe  return.  *  . 

The  garrison  at  St.  Augustine  had  been  in  great 
anxiety  respecting  their  leader,  and  from  the  accounts 
given  by  those  who  had  deserted,  they  had  feared 


63  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

the  total  loss  of  the  expedition.  The  worthy  Chap 
lain  thus  describes  the  return  of  Menendez  :— 

"The  same  day,  being  Monday,  we  saw  a  man 
coming,  crying  out  loudly.  I  myself  was  the  first 
to  run  to  him  for  the  news.  He  embraced  me  with 
transport,  crying,  '  Victory !  Victory !  The  French 
fort  is  ours.'  I  promised  him  the  present  which  the 
bearer  of  good  news  deserves,  and  gave  him  the  best 
in  my  power. 

"  At  the  hour  of  vespers  our  good  General  arrived, 
with  fifty  foot-soldiers  very  much  fatigued.  As  soon 
as  I  learned  that  he  was  coming,  I  ran  home  and  put 
on  a  new  soutain,  the  best  which  I  had,  and  a  sur 
plice,  and  going  out  with  a  crucifix  in  my  hand,  I 
went  forward  to  receive  him ;  and  he,  a  gentleman 
and  a  good  Christian,  before  entering  kneeled  and 
all  his  followers,  and  returned  thanks  to  the  Lord 
for  the  great  favours  which  he  had  received.  My 
companions  and  myself  marched  in  front  in  proces 
sion  chanting,  so  that  we  all  returned  with  the  great 
est  demonstrations  of  joy." 

When  about  to  dispatch  the  two  vessels  in  his 
harbor  to  the  St.  John's,  to  cut  off  the  French  ves 
sels  he  had  left  there,  he  was  informed  that  two  sail 
had  already  been  seen  to  pass  the  bar,  supposed  to 
contain  the  French  fugitives. 

Eight  days  after  the  capture  of  Fort  Caroline,  a 


OF     ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  63 

fire  broke  out  in  the  quarters  of  St.  Augustine,  which 
destroyed  much  treasure  and  provisions,  and  the 
origin  of  which  was  doubtful,  whether  to  be  ascribed 
to  accident  or  design.  Much  disaffection  prevailed 
among  the  officers  and  soldiers,  and  the  fire  was 
looked  upon  with  pleasure  by  some,  as  having  a  ten 
dency  to  hasten  their  departure  from  a  spot  which 
offered  few  temptations  or  rewards,  compared  with 
Mexico  or  Peru. 

On  the  very  day  of  Menendez's  return,  a  French 
man  was  discovered  by  a  fishing  party  on  Anastasia 
Island,  who,  being  taken,  said  he  was  one  of  a  party 
of  eighteen,  sent  in  a  small  vessel,  some  days  before, 
to  reconnoitre  the  Spanish  position ;  that  they  had 
been  unable  to  keep  the  sea,  and  had  been  thrown 
ashore,  about  four  leagues  below,  at  the  mouth  of  a 
river ;  that  the  Indians  attacked  and  killed  three  of 
their  number,  and  they  thereupon  escaped.  * 

Menendez  dispatched  a  captain  and  fifty  men,  to 
get  off  the  vessel  and  capture  any  of  the  French 
who  might  be  found.  On  their  arrival  at  the  place, 
they  found  that  all  the  French  had  been  killed  by 
the  Indians ;  but  they  succeeded  in  getting  off  the 
vessel.  Menendez,  feeling  uneasy  in  reference  to 
their  encounter  with  the  Indians,  had  followed  on 
after  the  expedition,  in  company  with  the  worthy 
Chaplain,  to  whom  his  promenade  among  the  briars, 


64  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

vines,  prickly  cedars,  chaparral,  and  prickly  pears 
of  Anastasia,  seems  to  have  been  a  true  via  dolorosa. 

Upon  their  arrival,  they  found  a  considerable  body 
of  French  upon  the  south  side  of  an  inlet,  whose 
fires  indicated  their  position. 

The  four  vessels  of  Ribault,  which  had  gone  in 
pursuit  of  the  Spaniards  at  St.  Augustine,  had  been 
overtaken  by  the  storm,  and  after  keeping  to  sea 
with  incredible  effort,  had  been  finally  driven  ashore 
upon  the  shoals  of  Canaveral,*  with  but  little  loss 
of  life  but  a  total  loss  of  every  thing  else ;  they 
were  thus  thrown  on  shore  without  shelter  from  the 
elements,  famished  with  hunger,  borne  down  by 
disappointment,  and  utterly  dispirited  and  demoral 
ized.  They  were  consumed,  also,  by  the  most  pain 
ful  uncertainty.  Marching  to  the  northward  along 
shore,  they  discovered  a  skiff,  and  resolved  to  send 
a  small  "number  of  persons  in  it,  to  make  their  way 
by  sea  to  Fort  Caroline,  to  bring  succor  to  them  from 
there.  This  boat  succeeded  in  reaching  the  St. 
John's,  where  they  were  informed,  by  friendly  In 
dians,  of  the  fate  which  had  befallen  the  fort ;  and 
subsequently  they  fell  in  with  a  Frenchman  who 
had  escaped,  who  related  to  them  the  whole  disaster. 

*  Canaveral,  -where  Ribault  was  wrecked,  must  have  been  some  point 
north  of  Mosquito  Inlet,  and  not  the  cape  now  bearing  that  name,  as  he 
could  not  have  crossed  Mosquito  Inlet  in  his  march  to  Matanzas. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  65 

Upon  tliis  they  concluded  to  seek  their  own  safety 
among  the  friendly  Indians  of  St.  Helena,  rather 
than  to  be  the  useless  bearers  of  the  tidings  of  their 
misfortunes  to  their  companions  in  arms. 

There  are  several  accounts  of  the  sad  fate  which 
befell  the  followers  of  Blbault,  the  massacre  of  whom 
has  been  perpetuated  by  the  memorial  name  given 
to  its  scene,  "  the  bloody  river  of  Matanzas,"  the  ebb 
and  flow  of  whose  recurring  tides  for  three  hundred 
years  have  failed  to  wash  out  the  record  of  blood 
which  has  associated  thfs  massacre  of  the  Huguenots 
with  the  darkest  scenes  of  earth's  history.  In  con 
sequence  of  the  rank  and  number  of  the  victims,  the 
event  produced  various  and  somewhat  contradictory 
accounts  ;  but  all  stamped  with  a  seal  of  reprobation 
and  execration  the  act  and  the  actors,  without  ref 
erence  to  creed  or  nationality.  Challeux  relates 
instances  of  cruel  barbarity  added  to  the  atrocity 
of  the  slaughter  itself;  and  others,  it  appears,  had 
given  other  versions,  all  in  different  degree  point 
ing  the  finger  of  historic  justice  to  mark  and  com 
memorate  the  crime  against  humanity. 

The  Spanish  historian,  Barcia,  aims  to  counteract 
this  general  condemnation,  of  which  in  his  own  lan 
guage  he  says,  "These  calumnies,  repeated  in  so 
many  quarters,  have  sullied  the  fame  of  the  Adelan- 
tado,  being  exaggerated  by  the  heretics,  and  con- 


66  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

sented  to  by  the  Catholics,  so  that  even  the  Father 
Felix  Briot,  in  his  annals,  says  that  he  caused  them 
to  be  killed  contrary  to  the  faith  which  he  had  given 
them ;  which  is  altogether  a  falsehood,  for  the  Adelan- 
tado  did  not  give  his  word,  nor  would  he  when  asked 
give  it,  to  spare  their  lives,  although  they  were  will 
ing  to  pay  him  for  doing  so ;  nor  in  the  capture  of 
Fort  Caroline  did  he  do  more  than  has  been  related ; 
and  such  is  the  account  given  by  Doctor  Salis  de  las 
Meras,  brother-in-law  to  Donna  Maria  de  Salis,  wife 
of  the  Adelantado,  who  was  present,  and  who,  relat 
ing  the  punishment  of  the  heretics,  and  the  manner 
in  which  it  was  accomplished,  says, — 

"  c  The  Adelantado  occupied  himself  in  fortifying 
his  settlement  at  St.  Augustine,  as  well  as  he  could, 
to  defend  it  from  the  French  fleet  if  they  should 
attack  it.  Upon  the  following  day  some  Indians 
came  and  by  signs  informed  them  that  four  leagues 
distant  there  were  a  large  number  of  Christians,  who 
were  unable  to  cross  an  arm  of  the  sea  or  strait,  which 
is  a  river  upon  the  inner  side  of  an  inlet,  which  they 
were  obliged  to  cross  in  order  to  come  to  St.  Augus 
tine.  The  Adelantado  sent  thither  forty  soldiers 
about  dusk,  and  arrived  about  midnight  near  the 
inlet,  where  he  commanded  a  halt  until  morning,  and 
leaving  his  soldiers  concealed,  he  ascended  a  tree  to 
see  what  was  the  state  of  matters.  He  discovered 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  67 

many  persons  on  the  other  side  of  the  river,  and 
their  standards  ;  and  to  prevent  their  passing  over, 
he  directed  his  men  to  exhibit  themselves  towards 
the  shore,  so  that  it  might  be  supposed  that  he  had 
with  him  a  large  force  ;  and  when  they  were  discov 
ered,  a  French  soldier  swam  over,  and  said  that  the 
persons  beyond  the  river  were  Frenchmen,  that  they 
had  been  wrecked  in  a  storm,  but  had  all  saved  their 
lives.  The  Adelantado  asked  what  French  they 
were  ?  He  answered,  that  they  were  two  hundred 
of  the  people  under  command  of  Jean  Bibault, 
Viceroy  and  Captain  General  of  this  country  for 
the  king  of  the  French.  He  asked  again,  if  they 
were  Catholics  or  Lutherans  ?  It  was  replied  that 
they  were  all  Lutherans,  of  the  new  religion ;  all  of 
which  was  previously  well  known  to  the  Adelantado, 
when  he  encountered  their  fleet  with  his  vessels  ;  and 
the  women  and  children  whom  he  had  spared  when 
he  took  their  fort,  had  also  so  informed  him ;  and  he 
had  found  in  the  fort  when  he  took  it,  six  trunks 
filled  with  books,  well  bound  and  gilt ;  all  of  which 
were  of  the  new  sect,  and  from  which  they  did  not 
say  mass,  but  preached  their  Lutheran  doctrines 
every  evening ;  all  of  which  books  he  directed  to  be 
burnt,  not  sparing  a  single  one. 

"  'The  Adelantado  then  asked  him  why  he  had 
come  over  ?     He  said  he  had  been  sent  over  by  his 


68  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

Captain,  to  see  what  people  they  were.  The  General 
asked  if  he  wished  to  return.  He  said  "  Yes,  but  he 
desired  to  know  what  people  they  were."  This  man 
spoke  very  plainly,  for  he  was  a  Gascon  of  San  Juan 
de  Suz.  "  Then  tell  him,"  said  the  Adelantado,  "  that 
it  is  the  Viceroy  and  Captain  General  of  this  country 
for  the  king,  Don  Philip  ;  and  that  his  name  is  Pedro 
Menendez,  and  that  he  is  here  with  some  of  his  sol 
diery  to  ascertain  what  people  those  were,  for  he 
had  been  informed  the  day  before  that  they  were 
there,  and  the  hour  at  which  they  came." 

" '  The  French  soldier  went  over  with  his  message, 
and  immediately  returned,  saying  "that  if  they 
would  pledge  faith  to  his  captain  and  to  four 
other  gentlemen,  they  would  like  to  come  and  treat 
with  him ; "  and  they  desired  the  loan  of  a  boat, 
which  the  General  had  directed  to  bring  some  pro 
visions  to  the  river.  The  General  instructed  the 
messenger  to  say  to  his  captain,  "that  he  might 
come  over  securely  under  the  pledge  of  his  word," 
and  then  sent  over  for  them  the  boat;  and  they 
crossed  over.  The  Adelantado  received  them  very 
well,  with  only  ten  of  his  followers  ;  the  others  he 
directed  to  stay  some  distance  off  among  some 
bushes,  so  that  their  number  might  appear  to  be 
greater  than  it  was.  One  of  the  Frenchmen  announ 
ced  himself  as  captain  of  these  people  ;  and  that  in 


OF    ST     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  69 

a  great  storm  they  had  lost  four  galleons,  and  other 
vessels  of  the  king  of  Prance,  within  a  distance  of 
twenty  leagues  of  each  other ;  and  that  these  were 
the  people  from  on  board  of  one  ship,  and  that  they 
desired  they  would  let  them  have  a  boat  for  this 
arm  of  the  sea,  and  for  another  four  leagues  hence, 
which  was  at  St.  Augustine ;  that  they  desired  to  go 
to  a  fort  which  they  held  twenty  leagues  from  there. 
It  was  the  same  fort  which  Menendez  had  taken. 
The  Adelantado  asked  them  "if  they  were  Catholics 
or  Lutherans  ?"  He  replied  "  that  they  were  all  of 
the  New  Keligion."  Then  the  Adelantado  said 
to  them,  "  Gentlemen,  your  fort  is  taken  and  its  peo 
ple  destroyed,  except  the  women,  and  children  under 
fifteen  years  of  age ;  and  that  you  may  be  assured 
of  this,  among  the  soldiers  who  are  here  there  are 
many  things,  and  also  there  are  here  two  Frenchmen 
whom  I  have  brought  with  me,  who  said  they  were 
Catholics.  Sit  down  here  and  eat,  and  I  will  send 
the  two  Frenchmen  to  you,  as  also  the  things  which 
some  of  my  soldiers  have  taken  from  the  fort,  in 
order  that  you  may  be  satisfied. 

" c  The  Adelantado  having  spoken  thus,  directed 
food  to  be  given  to  them,  and  sent  the  two  Frenchmen 
to  them,  and  many  things  which  the  soldiers  had 
brought  from  the  fort,  that  they  might  see  them, 
and  then  retired  himself,  to  eat  with  his  own  people  ; 


TO  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

and  an  hour  afterwards,  when  he  saw  that  the  French 
had  eaten,  he  went  where  they  were  and  asked  if 
they  were  satisfied  of  the  truth  of  what  he  had  told 
them.  They  said  they  were,  and  desired  that  for  a 
consideration,  he  should  give  them  vessels  and  ships' 
stores,  that  they  might  return  to  France.  The 
Adelantado  answered,  "  that  he  would  do  so  with 
great  pleasure  if  they  were  good  Catholics,  or  if  he 
had  the  ships  for  them ;  but  he  had  not  the  vessels, 
having  sent  two  to  St.  Matteo  (Ft.  Caroline),  the 
one  to  take  the  artillery  they  had  captured,  and  the 
French  women  and  children,  to  St.  Domingo,  and  to 
obtain  provisions.  The  other  had  to  go  upon  busi 
ness  of  his  Majesty  to  other  parts. 

" c  The  French  captain  replied, "  that  he  should  grant 
to  all,  their  lives,  and  that  they  should  remain  with 
him  until  they  could  obtain  shipping  for  France, 
since  they  were  not  at  war,  and  the  kings  of  Spain 
and  of  France  were  brothers  and  friends."  The  Ade 
lantado  said,  "  that  was  true,  and  Catholics  and  friends 
he  would  favor,  believing  that  he  would  serve  both 
kings  in  doing  so  ;  but  as  to  themselves,  being  of  the 
new  sect,  he  held  them  for  enemies,  and  he  would 
wage  war  upon  them  even  to  blood  and  to  fire ;  and 
that  he  would  pursue  them  with  all  cruelty  wherever 
he  should  encounter  them,  in  whatever  sea  or  land 
where  he  should  be  viceroy  or  captain  general  for 


OF     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  71 

his  king  ;  and  that  he  would  go  and  plant  the  holy 
faith  in  this  land,  that  the  Indians  might  be  enlight 
ened  and  be  brought  to  the  knowledge  of  the  Holy 
Catholic  Faith  of  Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour,  as  taught 
and  announced  by  the  Roman  Church.  That  if  they 
wished  to  surrender  their  standards  and  their  arms, 
and  throw  themselves  upon  his  mercy,  they  might 
do  so,  for  Tie  would  do  with  them  ivhat  God  should  of 
his  grace  direct ;  or,  they  could  do  as  they  might 
deem  proper ;  that  other  treaty  or  friendship  they 
should  not  have  from  him."  The  French  captain 
replied,  that  he  could  not  then  conclude  any  other 
matter  with  the  Adelantado.  He  went  over  in  the 
boat,  saying,  that  he  went  to  relate  what  had  passed, 
and  to  agree  upon  what  should  be  done,  and  within 
two  hours  he  would  return  with  an  answer.  The 
Adelantado  said,  "  They  could  do  as  seemed  best  to 
them,  and  he  would  wait  for  them."  Two  hours 
passed,  when  the  same  French  captain  returned,  with 
those  who  had  accompanied  him  previously,  and 
said  to  the  General,  "  that  there  were  many  people  of 
family,  and  nobles  among  them,  and  that  they  would 
give  fifty  thousand  ducats,  of  ransom,  if  he  would 
spare  all  their  lives."  He  answered,  "that  although 
he  was  a  poor  soldier,  he  could  not  be  governed  by 
selfish  interests,  and  if  he  were  to  be  merciful  and 
lenient,  he  desired  to  be  so  without  the  suspicion 


72  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

of  other  motives."  The  French  captain  returned  to 
urge  the  matter.  "  Do  not  deceive  yourselves,"  said 
the  Adelantado,  "  for  if  Heaven  were  to  join  to  earth, 
I  would  do  no  otherwise  than  I  have  said."  The  French 
officer  then  going  towards  where  his  people  stood, 
said,  that  in  accordance  with  that  understanding  he 
would  return  shortly  with  an  answer;  and  within 
half  an  hour  he  returned  and  placed  in  the  boat,  the 
standards,  seventy  arquebuses,  twenty  pistols,  a 
quantity  of  swords  and  shields,  and  some  helmets 
and  breast-plates ;  and  the  captain  came  to  where 
the  General  stood,  and  said  that  all  the  French  force 
there  submitted  themselves  to  his  clemency,  and 
surrendered  to  him  their  standards  and  their  arms. 
The  Adelantado  then  directed  twenty  soldiers  to  go 
in  the  boat  and  bring  the  French,  ten  by  ten.  The 
river  was  narrow  and  easy  to  pass,  and  he  directed 
Diego  Flores  de  Valdes,  Admiral  of  the  Fleet,  to 
receive  the  standards  and  the  arms,  and  to  go  in  the 
boat  and  see  that  the  soldiers  did  not  maltreat  them. 
The  Adelantado  then  withdrew  from  the  shore, 
about  two  bow  shots,  behind  a  hillock  of  sand, 
within  a  copse  of  bushes,  where  the  persons  who 
came  in  the  boat  which  brought  over  the  French, 
could  not  see ;  and  then  said  to  the  French  captain 
and  the  other  eight  Frenchmen  who  were  there  with 
him,  "  Gentlemen,  I  have  but  few  men  with  me,  and 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  73 

they  are  not  very  effective,  and  you  are  numerous ; 
and,  going  unrestrained,  it  would  be  an  easy  tiling 
to  take  satisfaction  upon  our  men  for  those  whom 
we  destroyed  when  we  took  the  fort ;  and  thus  it  is 
necessary  that  you  should  march  with  hands  tied 
behind,  a  distance  of  four  leagues  from  here  where 
I  have  my  camp."  The  French  replied  "  that  they 
would  do  so;"  and  they  had  their  hands  tied 
strongly  behind  their  backs  with  the  match  ropes  of 
the  soldiers ;  and  the  ten  who  came  in  the  boat  did 
not  see  those  who  had  their  hands  tied,  until  they 
came  up  to  the  same  place,  for  it  was  so  arranged, 
in  order  that  the  French  who  had  not  passed  the 
river,  should  not  understand  what  was  being  done, 
and  might  not  be  offended,  and  thus  were  tied  two 
hundred  and  eight  Frenchmen.  Of  whom  the  Ade- 
lantado  asked  that  if  any  among  them  were  Catho 
lics,  they  should  declare  it.  Eight  said  that  they 
were  Catholics,  and  were  separated  from  the  others 
and  placed  in  a  boat,  that  they  might  go  by  the 
river  to  St.  Augustine;  and  all  the  rest  replied  "that 
they  were  of  the  new  religion,  and  held  themselves 
to  be  very  good  Christians  ;  that  this  was  their 
faith  and  no  other.  The  Adelantado  then  gave  the 
order  to  march  with  them,  having  first  given  them 
meat  and  drink,  as  each  ten  arrived,  before  being 
tied, .  which  was  done  before  the  succeeding  ten 
6 


7±  THE    HISTORY     AND    ANTIQUITIES 

arrived ;  and  he  directed  one  of  his  captains  who 
marched  with  the  vanguard,  that  at  a  certain  dis 
tance  from  there,  he  would  observe  a  mark  made  by 
a  lance,  which  he  carried  in  his  hand,  which  would 
be  in  a  sandy  place  that  they  would  be  obliged  to 
pass  in  going  on  their  way  towards  the  fort  of  St. 
Augustine,  and  that  there  the  prisoners  should  all  be 
destroyed ;  and  he  gave  the  one  in  command  of  the 
rear-guard  the  same  orders ;  and  it  was  done  accord 
ingly  ;  when,  leaving  there  all  of  the  dead,  they 
returned  the  same  night  before  dawn,  to  the  fort  at 
St.  Augustine,  although  it  was  already  sundown 
when  the  men  were  killed.' "  * 

Such  is  the  second  part  of  this  sad  and  bloody  trag 
edy  ;  which  took  place  at  the  Matanzas  Inlet,  about 
eighteen  miles  south  of  the  city  of  St.  Augustine,  and 
at  the  southerly  end  of  Anastasia  Island.  The  ac 
count  we  have  given,  it  must  be  borne  in  mind,  is 
that  of  De  Solis,  the  brother-in-law  and  apologist  of 
Menendez  ;  but  even  under  his  extenuating  hand  the 
conduct  of  Menendez  was  that  of  one  deaf  to  the 
voice  of  humanity,  and  exulting  in  cold-blooded 
treachery,  dealing  in  vague  generalities  intended  to 
deceive,  while  affording  a  shallow  apology  for  the 
actor.  A  massacre  in  cold  blood  of  poor  ship- 

*  Barcia,  p.  87. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  75 

wrecked,  famished  men,  prisoners  yielding  themselves 
to  an  expected  clemency,  tied  up  like  sheep,  and 
butchered  by  poignard  blows  from  behind,  shocked 
alike  the  moral  sense  of  all  to  whom  the  tale  came, 
without  regard  to  faith  or  flag. 


THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

.FATE  OF  RIBADLT  AND  HIS  FOLLOWERS— BLOODY  MASSACRE 
AT  MATANZAS— 1565. 

THE  first  detachment  of  the  French  whom  Me- 
nendez  met  and  so  utterly  destroyed,  constituted  the 
complement  of  a  single  vessel,  which  had  been  thrown 
ashore  at  a  more  northerly  point  than  the  others. 
All  these  vessels  were  wrecked  between  Musquito 
Inlet  and  Matanzas. 

Of  the  fate  of  the  main  detachment,  under  Bi- 
bault  in  person,  we  have  the  following  account,  as 
related  by  the  same  apologist,  the  chaplain  De  Solis : 

"  On  the  next  day  following  the  return  of  the 
Adelantado  at  St.  Augustine,  the  same  Indians  who 
came  before  returned,  and  said  that  '  a  great  many 
more  Christians  were  at  the  same  part  of  the  river 
as  the  others  had  been.'  The  Adelantado  concluded 
that  it  must  be  Jean  Blbault,  the  General  of  the 
Lutherans  at  sea  and  on  land,  whom  they  called  the 
Viceroy  of  this  country  for  the  king  of  France.  He 
immediately  went,  with  one  hundred  and  fifty  men 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  77 

in  good  order,  and  reached  the  place  where  he  had 
lodged  the  first  time,  at  about  midnight ;  and  at 
dawn  he  pushed  forward  to  the  river,  with  his  men 
drawn  out,  and  when  it  was  daylight,  he  saw,  two 
bow-shots  from  the  other  bank  of  the  river,  many 
persons,  and  a  raft  made  to  cross  over  the  people,  at 
the  place  where  the  Adelantado  stood.  But  imme 
diately,  when  the  French  saw  the  Adelantado  and 
his  people,  they  took  arms,  and  displayed  a  royal 
standard  and  two  standards  of  companies,  sounding 
fifes  and  drums,  in  very  good  order,  and  showing 
a  front  of  battle  to  the  Adelantado ;  who,  having 
ordered  his  men  to  sit  down  and  take  their 
breakfast,  so  that  they  made  no  demonstration  of 
any  change,  he  himself  walked  up  and  down  the 
shore,  with  his  admiral  and  two  other  captains,  pay 
ing  no  attention  to  the  movement  and  demonstration 
of  battle  of  the  French ;  so  that  they,  observing  this, 
halted  and  the  fifes  and  drums  ceased,  while  with  a 
bugle  note  they  unfurled  the  white  flag  of  peace, 
which  was  returned  by  the  Adelantado.  A  French 
man  placed  himself  upon  the  raft,  and  cried  with  a 
loud  voice  that  he  wished  to  cross  over,  but  that 
owing  to  the  force  of  the  current  he  could  not  bring 
the  raft  over,  and  desired  an  Indian  canoe  which 
was  there  to  be  sent  aver.  The  Adelantado  said  he 
could  swim  over  for  it,  under  pledge  of  his  word. 


78  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

A  French  sailor  immediately  came  over,  but  the 
General  would  not  permit  him  to  speak  with  him, 
but  directed  him  to  take  the  canoe,  and  go  and  tell 
his  captain,  that  inasmuch  as  he  had  called  for  a 
conference,  if  he  desired  any  thing  he  should  send 
over  some  one  to  communicate  with  him.  The 
same  sailor  immediately  came  with  a  gentleman, 
who  said  he  was  the  sergeant  major  of  Jean  Bi- 
bault,  Viceroy  and  Captain  General  of  this  land  for 
the  king  of  France,  and  that  he  had  sent  him  to  say, 
that  they  had  been  wrecked  with  their  fleet  in  a 
great  storm,  and  that  he  had  with  him  three  hundred 
and  fifty  French;  that  they  wished  to  go  to  a  fort 
which  they  held,  twenty  leagues  from  there ;  that 
they  wished  the  favor  of  boats,  to  pass  this  river, 
and  the  other,  four  leagues  further  on,  and  that  he 
desired  to  know  if  they  were  Spaniards,  and  under 
what  leader  they  served. 

"  The  Adelantado  answered  him,  that  they  were 
Spaniards,  and  that  the  Captain  under  whom  they 
served  was  the  person  now  addressing  him,  and  was 
called  Pedro  Menendez.  That  he  should  tell  his  Gen 
eral  that  the  fort  which  he  held  twenty  leagues  from 
there  had  been  taken  by  him,  and  he  had  destroyed 
all  the  French,  and  the  rest  who  had  come  with  the 
fleet,  because  they  were  badly  governed ;  and  then, 
passing  thence  to  where  the  dead  bodies  of  *the 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  79 

Frenchmen  whom  he  had  killed  still  lay  unburied, 
pointed  them  out  to  him  and  said,  therefore  he  could 
not  permit  them  to  pass  the  river  to  their  fort. 

"The  sergeant,  with  an  unmoved  countenance, 
and  without  any  appearance  of  uneasiness  on  account 
of  what  the  Adelantado  had  said,  replied,  that  if 
he  would  have  the  goodness  to  send  a  gentleman  of 
his  party,  to  say  to  the  French  general,  that  they 
might  negotiate  with  safety,  the  people  were 
much  exhausted,  and  the  general  would  come  over 
in  a  boat  which  was  there.  The  Adelantado  replied, 
4  Farewell,  comrade,  and  bear  the  answer  which  they 
shall  give  you  ;  and  if  your  general  desires  to  come 
and  treat  with  me,  I  give  my  word  that  he  shall 
come  and  return  securely,  with  four  or  six  of  his 
people  whom  he  may  select  for  his  advisors,  that  he 
may  do  whatever  he  may  conclude  to  be  best.' 

"  The  French  gentleman  then  departed  with  this 
message.  Within  half  an  hour  he  returned  to  accept 
the  assurance  the  Adelantado  had  given,  and  to  ob 
tain  the  boat ;  which  the  Adelantado  was  unwilling 
to  let  him  have,  but  said  he  could  use  the  canoe, 
which  was  safe,  and  the  strait  was  narrow  ;  and  he 
again  went  back  with  this  message. 

"  Immediately  Jean  Ribault  came  over,  whom  the 
Adelantado  received  very  well,  with  other  eight 
gentlemen,  who  had  come  with  him.  They  were 


80  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

all  gentlemen  of  rank  and  position.  He  gave  them 
a  collation,  and  would  Lave  given  them  food  if  they 
had  desired.  Jean  Bibault  with  much  humility, 
thanked  him  for  his  kind  reception,  and  said  that  to 
raise  their  spirits,  much  depressed  by  the  sad  news 
of  the  death  of  their  comrades,  they  would  partake 
only  of  the  wine  and  condiments,  and  did  not  wish 
any  thing  else  to  eat.  Then  after  eating,  Jean  Bi 
bault  said,  i  that  he  saw  that  those  his  companions 
were  dead,  and  that  he  could  not  be  mistaken  if  he 
desired  to  be.'  Then  the  Adelantado  directed  the 
soldiers  to  bring  each  one  whatever  he  had  taken 
from  the  fort ;  and  he  saw  so  many  things,  that  he 
knew  for  certain  that  it  was  taken  ;  although  he 
knew  this  before,  yet  he  could  not  wholly  believe  it, 
because  among  his  men  there  was  a  Frenchman  by 
name  of  Barbero,  of  those  whom  the  Adelantado 
had  ordered  to  be  destroyed  with  the  rest,  and  who 
was  left  for  dead  with  the  others,  having  with  the  first 
thrust  he  received  fallen  down  and  made  as  though  he 
were  dead,  and  when  they  left  there  he  had  passed  over 
by  swimming,  to  Bibault ;  and  this  Barbero  held  it 
for  certain  that  the  Adelantado  had  deceived  them 
in  saying  that  the  fort  was  taken,  it  not  being  so  ; 
and  thus  until  now  he  had  supposed.  The  Adelan 
tado  said  that  in  order  with  more  certainty  to 
believe  this  and  satisfy  himself,  he  might  converse 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  81 

apart  with  the  two  Frenchmen  who  were  present,  to 
satisfy  him  better  ;  which  he  did. 

"  Immediately  Jean  Ribault  came  towards  the 
Adelantado  and  said,  '  it  was  certain  that  all  which 
he  had  told  him  was  true ;  but  that  what  had  happened 
to  him,  might  have  happened  to  the  Adelantado ; 
and  since  their  kings  were  brothers,  and  such  great 
friends,  the  Adelantado  should  act  towards  him  as  a 
friend,  and  give  him  ships  and  provisions,  that  he 
might  return  to  France.' 

"  The  Adelantado  replied  in  the  same  manner  that 
he  had  done  to  the  other  Frenchmen,  as  to  what  he 
would  do ;  and  that  taking  it  or  leaving  it,  Jean 
Ribault  could  obtain  nothing  further  from  the  Ade 
lantado.  Jean  Ribault  then  said  that  he  would  go 
and  give  an  account  of  matters  to  his  people,  for  he 
had  among  them  many  of  noble  blood ;  and  would 
return  or  send  an  answer  as  to  what  he  would  do. 

"  Three  hours  afterwards,  Jean  Ribault  returned 
in  the  canoe,  and  said,  c  that  there  were  different 
opinions  among  his  people;  that  while  some  were 
willing  to  yield  themselves  to  his  clemency,  others 
were  not.'  The  Adelantado  replied  c  that  it  mat 
tered  but  little  to  him  whether  they  all  came,  or  a 
part,  or  none  at  all ;  that  they  should  do  as  it  pleased 
them,  and  he  would  act  with  the  same  liberty.' 
Jean  Eibault  said  to  him,  '  that  the  half  of  the  peo- 


82  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

pie  who  were  willing  to  yield  themselves  to  his 
clemency,  would  pay  him  a  ransom  of  more  than 
100,000  ducats ;  and  the  other  half  were  able  to  pay 
more,  for  there  was  among  them  persons  of  wealth 
and  large  incomes,  who  had  desired  to  establish 
estates  in  this  country.'  The  Adelantado  answered 
him,  c  It  would  grieve  me  much  to  lose  so  great  and 
rich  a  ransom,  under  the  necessity  I  am  under  for 
such  aid,  to  carry  forward  the  conquest  and  settle 
ment  of  this  land,  in  the  name  of  my  king,  as  is  my 
duty,  and  to  plant  here  the  Holy  Evangel.'  Jean 
Ribault  considered  from  this,  that  with  the  amount 
which  they  could  all  give,  he  might  be  induced  to 
spare  his  own  life  and  that  of  all  the  others  who 
were  with  him,  and  that  they  might  be  able  to  pay 
more  than  200,000  ducats ;  and  he  said  to  the  Ade 
lantado,  '  that  he  would  return  with  his  answer  to 
his  people ;  that  as  it  was  late,  he  would  take  it  as  a 
favor  if  he  would  be  willing  to  wait  until  the  follow 
ing  day,  when  he  would  bring  their  reply  as  to  what 
they  would  conclude  to  do.'  The  Adelantado  said, 
1  Yes,  that  he  would  wait.'  Jean  Ribault  then  went 
back  to  his  people,  it  being  already  sunset.  In  the 
morning,  he  returned  with  the  canoe,  and  surren 
dered  to  the  Adelantado  two  royal  standards — 
the  one  that  of  the  king  of  France,  the  other  that 
of  the  Admiral  (Coligny), — and  the  standards  of  the 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  83 

company,  and  a  sword,  dagger,  and  helmet,  gilded 
very  beautifully ;  and  also  a  shield,  a  pistol,  and  a 
commission  given  him  under  the  high  admiral  of 
France,  to  assure  to  him  his  title  and  possessions. 

"  He  then  said  to  him,  '  that  but  one  hundred  and 
fifty  of  the  three  hundred  and  fifty  whom  he  had 
with  him  were  willing  to  yield  to  his  clemency,  and 
that  the  others  had  withdrawn  during  the  night ; 
and  that  they  might  take  the  boat  and  bring  those 
who  were  willing  to  come  over,  and  their  arms.' 
The  Adelantado  immediately  directed  the  captain, 
Diego  Flores  Valdes,  Admiral  of  the  fleet,  that  he 
should  bring  them  over  as  he  had  done  the  others, 
ten  by  ten  ;  and  the  Adelantado,  taking  Jean  Ki- 
bault  behind  the  sand  hills,  among  the  bushes  where 
the  others  had  their  hands  tied  behind  them,  he 
said  to  these  and  all  the  others  as  he  had  done  be 
fore,  that  they  had  four  leagues  to  go  after  night, 
and  that  he  could  not  permit  them  to  go  unbound  ; 
and  after  they  were  all  tied,  he  asked  if  they  were 
Catholics  or  Lutherans,  or  if  any  of  them  desired  to 
make  confession. 

"  Jean  Ribault  replied,  c  that  all  who  were  there 
were  of  the  new  religion,'  and  he  then  began  to 
repeat  the  psalm,  i  Domine  !  Memento  Mel ; '  and 
having  finished,  he  said,  '  that  from  dust  they  came 
and  to  dust  they  must  return,  and  that  in  twenty 


84  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

years,  more  or  less,  he  must  render  his  final  account ; 
that  the  Adelantado  might  do  with  them  as  he 
chose.'  The  Adelantado  then  ordered  all  to  be 
killed,  in  the  same  order  and  at  the  same  mark,  as 
had  been  done  to  the  others.  He  spared  only  the 
fifers,  drummers,  and  trumpeters,  and  four  others 
who  said  that  they  were  Catholics,  in  all,  sixteen 
persons."  "  Todos  los  demos  fueron  degcdlados" — 
"  all  the  rest  were  slaughtered,"  is  the  sententious 
summary  by  which  Padre  de  Solis  announced  the 
close  of  the  sad  career  of  the  gray-haired  veteran, 
the  brave  soldier,  the  Admiral  Jean  Kibault,  and  his 
companions.* 

At  some  point  on  the  thickly-wooded  shores  of 
the  Island  of  Anastasio,  or  beneath  the  shifting 
mounds  of  sand  which  mark  its  shores,  may  still  lie 
the  bones  of  some  of  the  three  hundred  and  fifty 
who,  spared  from  destruction  by  the  tempest,  and 
escaping  the  perils  of  the  sea  and  of  the  savage,  fell 
victims  to  the  vindictive  rancor  and  blind  rage  of 
one  than  whom  history  recalls  none  more  cruel,  or 
less  humane.  But  while  their  bones,  scattered  on 
earth  and  sea,  unhonored  and  unburied,  were  lost  to 
human  sight,  the  tale  of  their  destruction  and  sad 
fate,  scattered  in  like  manner  over  the  whole  world, 

*  Barcia,  p.  89. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLOEIDA.  85 

lias  raised  to  their  memory  through  sympathy  with 
their  fate,  a  memorial  which  will  endure  as  long  as 
the  pages  of  history. 

The  Adelantado  returned  that  night  to  St.  Augus 
tine,  where,  says  his  apologist,  some  persons  censured 
him  for  his  cruelty.  Others  commended  what  he  had 
done,  as  the  act  of  a  good  general,  and  said  that  even 
if  they  had  been  Catholics,  he  could  not  have  done 
more  justly  than  he  had  done  for  them  ;  for  with  the 
few  provisions  that  the  Adelantado  had,  either  the 
one  or  the  other  people  would  have  had  to  perish 
with  hunger,  and  the  French  would  have  destroyed 
our  people  :  they  were  the  most  numerous.* 

We  have  still  to  trace  the  fate  of  the  body  of  two 
hundred,  who  retired  from  Bibault  after  his  fatal 
determination  to  surrender  to  the  tender  mercies  of 
Menendez.  As  we  are  already  aware,  it  comprised 
the  elite  of  his  force,  men  of  standing  and  rank,  and 
whose  spirits  had  retained  the  energy  to  combat 
against  the  natural  discouragements  of  their  position  ; 
and  they  adopted  the  nobler  resolve  of  selling  their 
lives,  at  least  with  their  swords  in  their  hands. 

De  Solis  proceeds  to  give  the  following  further 
account  of  them: — 

"  Twenty  days  subsequently  to  the  destruction  of 

*  Barcia,  p.  89. 


86  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

these,  some  Indians  came  to  the  Adelantado,  and 
informed  him  by  signs,  that  eight  days'  journey  from 
here  to  the  southward,  near  the  Bahama  Channel,  at 
Canaveral,  a  large  number  of  people,  brethren  of 
those  whom  the  General  had  caused  to  be  killed, 
were  building  a  fort  and  a  vessel.  The  Adelantado 
at  once  came  to  the  conclusion,  that  the  French  had 
retired  to  the  place  where  their  vessels  were  wrecked, 
and  where  their  artillery  and  munitions,  and  provi 
sions  were,  in  order  to  build  a  vessel  and  return  to 
France  to  procure  succor.  The  General  thereupon 
dispatched  from  St.  Augustine  to  St.  Matteo,  ten  of 
his  soldiers,  conveying  intelligence  of  what  had  taken 
place,  and  directing  that  they  should  send  to  him  one 
hundred  and  fifty  of  the  soldiers  there,  with  the 
thirty-five  others  who  remained  when  he  returned 
to  St.  Augustine,  after  taking  the  fort.  The  master 
of  the  camp  immediately  dispatched  them,  under 
command  of  Captains  Juan  Velez  de  Medrano  and 
Andrez  Lopez  Patrio ;  and  they  arrived  at  St.  Augus 
tine  on  October  23d.  On  the  25th,  after  having 
heard  mass,  the  Adelantado  departed  for  the  coast, 
with  three  hundred  men,  and  three  small  vessels  to 
go  by  sea  with  the  arms  and  provisions ;  and  the 
vessels  were  to  go  along  and  progress  equally  with 
the  troops ;  and  each  night  when  the  troops  halted, 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  87 

the  vessels  also  anchored  by  them,  for  it  was  a  clear 
and  sandy  coast. 

"  The  Adelantado  carried  in  the  three  vessels,  pro 
visions  for  forty  days  for  three  hundred  men,  and  one 
days'  ration  was  to  last  for  two  days ;  and  he  promised 
to  do  everything  for  the  general  good  of  all,  although 
they  might  have  to  undergo  many  dangers  and  pri 
vations  ;  that  he  had  great  hope  that  he  would  have 
the  goodness  and  mercy  of  God  to  aid  him  in  carry 
ing  through  safely  this  so  holy  and  pious  an  under 
taking.  He  then  took  leave  of  them,  leaving  most 
of  them  in  tears,  for  he  was  much  loved,  feared,  and 
respected  by  all.* 

"  The  Adelantado,  after  a  wearisome  journey, 
marching  on  foot  himself  the  whole  distance,  arrived 
in  the  neighborhood  of  the  French  camp  on  All 
Saints  Day,  at  daylight,  guided  by  the  Indians  by 
land,  and  the  three  vessels  under  the  command  of 
Captain  Diego  de  Maya.  As  soon  as  the  French 
descried  the  Spaniards,  they  fled  to  their  fort,  with 
out  any  remaining.  The  Adelantado  sent  them  a 
trumpeter,  offering  them  their  lives,  that  they  should 
return  and  should  receive  the  same  treatment  as  the 
Spaniards.  One  hundred  and  fifty  came  to  the 
Adelantado ;  and  their  leader,  with  twenty  others, 

*  Barcia,  p.  89. 


THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

sent  to  say  that  they  would  sooner  be  devoured  by 
the  Indians,  than  surrender  themselves  to  the  Span 
iards.  The  Adelantado  received  those  who  surren 
dered,  very  well,  and  having  set  fire  to  the  fort, 
which  was  of  wood,  burned  the  vessel  which  they 
were  building,  and  buried  the  artillery,  for  the 
vessels  could  not  carry  them." 

De  Solis  here  closes  his  account  of  the  matter ;  but 
from  other  accounts  we  learn  that  the  Adelantado 
kept  his  faith  on  this  occasion  with  them,  and  that 
some  entered  his  service,  some  were  converted  to  his 
faith,  and  others  returned  to  France;  and  thus 
ended  the  Huguenot  attempt  to  colonize  the  shores 
of  Florida. 

There  are  several  other  accounts  of  the  fate  of 
Ribault  and  his  followers,  drawn  from  the  narratives 
of  survivors  of  the  expedition,  which,  without  vary 
ing  the  general  order  of  events,  fill  in  sundry  details  of 
the  massacres.  The  main  point  of  difference  is,  as  to 
the  pledges  or  assurances  given  by  Menendez.  The 
French  accounts  say  that  he  pledged  his  faith  to 
them,  that  their,  lives  should  be  spared.*  It  will  be 
seen  that  the  Spanish  account  denies  that  he  did  so, 
but  makes  him  use  language  subject  to  misconstrue- 


*  Such  was  the  understanding  of  those  who  then  wrote  in  reference 
to  the  transaction,  as  Barcia  admits. 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  89 

tion,  and  calculated  to  deceive  them  into  the  hope 
and  expectation  of  safety.  I  do  not  see  that  in  a 
Christian  or  even  moral  view  there  is  much  difference 
between  an  open  breach  of  faith,  and  the  breach  of 
an  implied  faith,  particularly  when  it  was  only  by 
this  deception  that  the  surrender  could  have  been 
accomplished.  Nor  could  Menendez  have  had  a  very 
delicate  sense  of  the  value  of  the  word  of  a  soldier, 
a  Christian,  and  a  gentleman,  when,  as  his  apologist 
admits,  he  did  directly  use  the  language  of  falsehood, 
to  induce  them  to  submit  to  the  degradation  of  hav 
ing  their  hands  tied. 

]STor,  considered  in  its  broader  aspects,  is  it  a  matter 
of  any  consequence,  whether  he  gave  his  word  or  no  ; 
nor  does  it  lessen  the  enormity  of  his  conduct,  had 
they  submitted  themselves  in  the  most  unreserved 
manner  to  his  discretion.  France  and  Spain  were 
at  peace ;  no  act  of  hostility  had  been  committed  by 
the  French  toward  the  Spaniards ;  and  Eibault  asked 
only  to  be  allowed  to  pass  on.  In  violation  alike 
of  the  laws  of  war  and  the  law  of  humanity,  he  first 
induced  them  to  surrender,  to  abide  what  God, 
whose  holy  name  he  invoked,  should  put  into  his 
heart  to  do,  and  then  cajoling  them  into  allowing 
their  hands  to  be  tied,  he  ordered  them  to  be  killed, 
in  their  bonds  as  they  stood,  defenseless,  helpless, 
wrecked,  and  famished  men.  It  would  have  been  a 
1 


90  THE    HISTORY    AXD    ANTIQUITIES 

base  blot  upon  human  nature,  had  he  thus  served 
the  most  savage  tribe  of  nations,  standing  on  that 
far  shore,  brought  into  the  common  sympathy  of 
want  and  suffering.  The  act  seems  one  of  monstrous 
atrocity,  when  committed  against  the  people  of  a 
sister  nation. 


OF    ST     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  91 


CHAPTER    IX. 

FORTIFYING  OF  ST.    AUGUSTINE— DISAFFECTIONS   AND   MUTI 
NIES—APPROVAL  OF  MENENDEZ'  ACTS  BY  KING  OF  SPAIN. 
1565-1568. 

DURING  the  time  of  the  several  expeditions  of  the 
Adelantado  against  the  French  Huguenots,  the  for 
tification  and  strengthen!  ng  of  the  defenses  of  the 
settlement  at  St.  Augustine  had  not  been  neglected. 
The  fort,  or  Indian  council-house,  which  had  been 
first  fortified,  seems  to  have  been  consumed  in  the 
conflagration  spoken  of;  and  thereupon  a  plan  of  a 
regular  fortification  or  fort  was  marked  out  by 
Menendez ;  and,  as  there  existed  some  danger  of  the 
return  of  the  French,  the  Spaniards  labored  unceas 
ingly  with  their  whole  force,  to  put  it  in  a  respectable 
state  of  defense.  From  an  engraving  contained  in 
De  Bry,  illustrating  the  attack  of  Sir  Francis  Drake, 
twenty  years  afterwards,  this  fort  appears  to  have 
been  an  octagonal  structure  of  logs,  and  located  near 
the  site  of  the  present  fort,  while  the  settlement  itself 
was  probably  made  in  the  first  instance,  at  the  lower 


92 


THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 


end  of  the  peninsula,  near  the  building  now  called 
the  powder-house. 

He  also  established  a  government  for  the  place, 
with  civil  and  military  officials,  a  hall  of  justice, 
et  cetera. 

All  of  these  matters  were  arranged  by  Menendez 
before  his  expedition  against  the  French  at  Canave 
ral,  of  whom  one  hundred  and  fifty  returned  with 
him,  and  were  received  upon  an  equal  footing  with 
his  own  men,  the  more  distinguished  being  received 
at  his  own  table  upon  the  most  friendly  terms  ;  a 
clemency  which,  with  a  knowledge  of  his  character, 
can  only  be  ascribed  to  motives  of  policy.  The 
position  of  the  French  at  Canaveral  was  probably 
inaccessible,  as  they  had  their  arms,  besides  artillery 
brought  from  the  vessels ;  and  the  duplicity  which 
had  characterized  his  success  with  their  comrades, 
was  out  of  the  question  here;  the  French  could 
therefore  exact  their  own  terms,  and  unshackled 
could  forcibly  resist  any  attempt  at  treachery. 

The  addition  of  this  number  to  his  force  lessened 
the  already  diminished  supply  of  provisions  which 
Menendez  had  brought  with  him ;  and  want  soon 
began  to  threaten  his  camp.  He  sent  as  many  of 
his  soldiers  as  he  could  into  camp  at  San  Matteo,  and 
endeavored  to  draw  supplies  from  the  Indians  ;  but 
unfortunately  for  him,  the  country  between  the  St. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  93 

Johns  and  St.  Augustine  was  under  the  rule  of  the 
Indian  Chief,  Satouriara,  the  friend  (and  ally  of  the 
French),  whose  hostility  the  Spaniards  were  never 
able  to  overcome.  Satouriara  and  his  followers 
withdrew  from  all  peaceable  intercourse  with  the 
Spaniards,  and  hung  about  their  path  to  destroy, 
harrass,  and  cut  them  off  upon  every  possible  occa 
sion. 

The  winter  succeeding  the  settlement  of  the 
Spaniards  at  St.  Augustine,  was  most  distressing 
and  discouraging  to  them.  The  lack  of  provisions 
in  their  camp  drove  them  to  seek,  in  the  surrounding 
country,  subsistence  from  the  roots  and  esculent 
plants  it  might  afford,  or  to  obtain  in  the  neigh 
boring  creeks,  fish  and  oysters ;  but  no  sooner  did  a 
Spaniard  venture  out  alone  beyond  the  gates  of  the 
fort,  than  he  was  grasped,  by  some  unseen  foe,  from 
the  low  underbrush  and  put  to  death,  or  a  shower  of 
arrows  from  some  tree-top  was  his  first  intimation  of 
danger  ;  if  he  discharged  his  arquebuse  towards  his 
invisible  assailants,  others  would  spring  upon  him 
before  he  could  reload  his  piece  ;  or,  if  he  attempted 
to  find  fish  and  oysters  in  some  quiet  creek,  the 
noiseless  canoe  of  an  Indian  would  dart  in  upon 
him,  and  the  heavy  war-club  of  the  savage  descend 
ing  upon  his  unprotected  head,  end  his  existence. 
Against  such  a  foe,  no  defense  could  avail ;  and  it  is 


9±  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

related  that  more  than  one  hundred  and  twenty  of 
the  Spaniards  were  thus  killed,  including  Captain 
Martin  de  Oehoa,  Captain  Diego  de  Hevia,  Fernando 
de  Gamboa,  and  Juan  Menendez,  a  nephew  of  the 
Adelantado,  and  many  others  of  the  bravest  and 
most  distinguished  of  the  garrison. 

In  this  crisis  of  affairs,  the  Governor  concluded  to 
go  to  Cuba  himself,  to  obtain  relief  for  his  colony. 
He  in  the  meantime  established  a  fort  at  St.  Lucia, 
near  Canaveral.  A  considerable  jealousy  seems  to 
have  existed  on  the  part  of  the  governor  of  Cuba ;  and 
he  received  Menendez  with  great  coolness,  and  in 
reply  to  his  appeals  for  aid,  only  offered  an  empty  ves 
sel.  In  this  emergency,  Menendez*  contemplated,  as 
his  only  means  of  obtaining  what  he  wished,  to  go  upon 
a  filibustering  expedition  against  some  Portuguese  and 
English,  vessels  which  were  in  those  waters.  While 
making  preparations  to  do  this,  four  vessels  of  the  fleet 
with  which  he  had  left  Spain,  and  which  had  been 
supposed  lost,  arrived ;  and  after  dispatching  a  vessel 
to  Campeachy  for  provisions,  he  commenced  his 
return  voyage  to  his  colony,  delaying  however  for  a 
time  in  South  Florida,  to  seek  intelligence  among 
the  Indians  of  his  lost  son. 

In  the  mean  time  his  garrisons  at  St.  Augustine 
and  San  Matteo  had  mutinied,  and  were  in  open 
revolt ;  provisions  had  become  so  scarce  that  twenty- 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTIXE,     FLORIDA.  95 

five  reals  had  been  given  for  a  pound  of  biscuit,  and 
but  for  the  fish  they  would  have  starved.  They 
plundered  the  public  stores,  imprisoned  their  officers, 
and  seized  upon  a  vessel  laden  with  provisions  which 
had  been  sent  to  the  garrison.  The  Master  of  the 
Canip  succeeded  in  escaping  from  confinement  and 
releasing  his  fellow  prisoners,  by  a  bold  movement 
cut  off  the  intercourse  between  the  mutineers  on 
board  the  vessel  and  those  on  shore,  and  hung  the 
Sergeant  Major,  who  was  at  the  head  of  the  move 
ment.  The  Commandant  then  attempted  to  attack 
those  in  the  vessel,  and  was  nearly  lost  with  his 
companions,  by  being  wrecked  on  the  bar.  The 
vessel  made  sail  to  the  West  India  Islands.  The 
garrison  at  San  Matteo  took  a  vessel  there  and  came 
around  to  St.  Augustine,  but  arrived  after  their 
accomplices  had  left. 

Disease  had  already  begun  to  make  its  ravages, 
and  added  to  the  general  wish  to  leave  the  country ; 
which  all  would  then  have  done  had  they  had  the 
vessels  in  which  to  embark.  They  used  for  their 
recovery  from  sickness,  the  roots  of  a  native  shrub, 
which  produced  marvelous  cures. 

At  this  period  Menendez  returned  to  the  famished 
garrison,  but  was  forced  to  permit  Juan  Vicente, 
with  one  hundred  of  the  disaffected,  to  go  to  St. 
Domingo  by  a  vessel  which  he  dispatched  there  for 


9o  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

supplies ;  and  it  is  said  that  the  governors  of  the 
islands  where  they  went,  harbored  them,  and  that 
of  some  five  hundred  who  on  different  occasions 
deserted  from  the  Adelantado,  and  all  of  whom  had 
been  brought  out  at  his  cost,  but  two  or  three  were 
ever  returned  to  him ;  while  the  deserters  putting 
their  own  construction  upon  their  acts,  sent  home  to 
the  king  of  Spain  criminations  of  the  Adelantado, 
and  represented  the  conquest  of  Florida  as  a  hopeless 
and  worthless  acquisition ;  that  it  was  barren  and 
swampy,  and  produced  nothing. 

After  this  defection,  Menendez  proceeded  along 
the  coast  to  San  Matteo,  and  thence  to  Guale, 
Amelia,  and  adjoining  islands,  Orista  and  St.  Helena ; 
made  peaceful  proposals  to  the  Indian  tribes,  lectured 
them  upon  theology,  and  planted  a  cross  at  their 
council-houses.  The  cacique  of  Guale  asked  Me 
nendez  how  it  was  "  that  he  had  waged  war  upon 
the  other  white  men,  who  had  come  from  the  same 
country  as  himself?"  He  replied,  "that  the  other 
white  people  were  bad  Christians,  and  believers  in 
lies ;  and  that  those  whom  he  had  killed,  deserved 
the  most  cruel  death,  because  they  had  fled  their 
own  country,  and  came  to  mislead  and  deceive  the 
caciques  and  other  Indians,  as  they  had  already 
before  misled  and  deceived  many  other  good  Christ 
ians,  in  order  that  the  devil  may  take  possession  of 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  97 

them."      While    at    St.   Helena    he    succeeded  in 
obtaining  permission  of  the  Indians  to  erect  a  fort 
there,  and  he  left  a  detachment.     On  his  return  he 
also   erected  fort  San  Felipe,  at  Orista  ;    and  after 
setting  up  a  cross  at  Guale,  the  cacique  demanded 
of  him,  that  as  now  they  had  become  good  Christians, 
he  should  cause  rain  to  come  upon  their  fields ;  for  a 
drought  had  continued  eight   months.      The  same 
night  a  severe  rain-storm  happened,  which  confirmed 
the  faith  of  the  Indians,  and  gained  the  Adelantado 
great  credit  with  them.     While  here,  he  learned  that 
there  was  a  fugitive  Lutheran  among  the  Indians, 
and  he  took  some  pains  to  cause  to  be  given  to  the 
fugitive,  hopes  of  good  treatment  if  he  would  come 
in  to  the  Spanish  post  at  St.  Helena,  while  he  gave 
private  directions  that  he  should  be  killed,  directing 
his  lieutenant  to   make  very  strange  of  his  disap 
pearance  ;  an  incident  very  illustrative  of  the  vindic- 
tiveness  and  duplicity  of  Menendez.* 

He  returned  to  St.  Augustine,  and  was  received 
with  great  joy,  and  devoted  himself  to  the  comple 
tion  of  the  fort,  which  was  to  frighten  the  savages, 
and  enforce  respect  from  strangers.  It  was  built,  it 
is  said,  where  it  now  stands,  donde  este  alwra,  (1722.) 

The  colony  left  at  St.  Helena  mutinied  almost 

*  Ensay.    Cron.    110. 


9S  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

immediately,  and  seizing  a  vessel  sent  with  supplies, 
sailed  for  Cuba,  and  were  wrecked  on  the  Florida 
Keys,  where  they  met  at  an  Indian  town,  the  muti 
neers  who  had  deserted  from  the  fort  at  St.  Matteo : 
these  had  been  also  wrecked  there. 

The  garrison  again  becoming  much  straitened  for 
provisions,  the  Adelantado,  in  June,  was  obliged  to 
go  to  Cuba  for  succor.  He  was  received  with  indif 
ference,  and  his  wishes  unheeded.  He  applied  to 
the  governor  of  Mexico,  and  others  who  happened 
to  be  there,  and  who  had  the  power  of  assisting 
him;  from  all  he  received  no  encouragement, 
but  the  advice  to  abandon  his  enterprise.  He  at 
last  pawned  his  jewels,  the  badge  of  his  order,  and 
his  valuables,  thus  obtaining  five  hundred  ducats ; 
with  which  he  purchased  provisions,  and  set  sail  on 
his  return,  with  only  sixty-five  men. 

But  just  at  this  period,  succor  came  to  the  fam 
ished  troops ;  a  fleet  of  seventeen  vessels  arrived 
with  fifteen  hundred  men  from  Spain,  under  Juan 
de  Avila,  as  admiral.  By  this  means  all  the  posts 
were  succored  and  reinforced,  and  the  enterprise 
saved  from  destruction ;  for  the  small  supplies 
brought  by  Menendez  would  have  been  soon 
exhausted,  and  further  efforts  being  out  of  his  power, 
they  would  have  been  forced  to  withdraw  from  the 
country. 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  99 

The  admiral  of  the  fleet  also  had  entrusted  to 
him  for  the  Adelantado,  a  letter  from  the  king, 
written  on  the  12th  of  May,  1566,  which,  among 
other  matters,  contained  the  following  royal  com 
mendation  of  the  acts  of  Menendez.  "  Of  the  great 
success  which  has  attended  your  enterprise,  we  have 
the  most  entire  satisfaction,  and  we  bear  in  memory 
the  loyalty,  the  love,  and  the  diligence,  with  which 
you  have  borne  us  service,  as  well  as  the  dangers 
and  perils  in  which  you  have  been  placed  ;  and  as  to 
the  retribution  you  have  visited  upon  the  Lutheran 
pirates  who  sought  to  occupy  that  country,  and  to 
fortify  themselves  there,  in  order  to  disseminate  in  it 
their  wicked  creed,  and  to  prosecute  there  their 
wrongs  and  robberies,  which  they  have  done  and 
were  doing  against  God's  service  and  my  own,  we 
believe  that  you  did  it  with  every  justification  and 
propriety,  and  we  consider  ourself  to  have  been  well 
served  in  so  doing."  * 

To  this  commendation  of  Philip  II.,  it  is  unneces 
sary  to  add  any  comment,  save  that  no  other  action 
could  have  been  expected  of  him.  And  of  Charles 
the  Ninth,  of  France,  the  Spanish  historian  says  that 
he  treated  the  memorial  of  the  widows  and  orphans 
of  the  slain  with  contempt,  "  considering  their  pun- 


100  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

isliment  to  have  been  just,  in  that  they  were  equally 
enemies  of  Spain,  of  France,  of  the  Church,  and  of 
the  peace  of  the  world." 

During  the  absence  of  Menendez  to  inspect  his 
posts,  disaffection  again  broke  out;  and  finding  his 
force  too  numerous,  he  with  sixteen  vessels  went 
upon  a  freebooting  expedition  to  attack  pirates.  He 
failed  to  meet  with  any ;  but  having  learned  that  a 
large  French  fleet  was  on  its  way,  he  visited  and 
fortified  the  forts  on  the  islands  of  Cuba,  Hispaniola, 
and  Puerto  Rico,  and  again  returned  to  Florida  ;  the 
expected  French  fleet  never  having  arrived.  About 
this  time,  a  small  vessel  brought  from  Spain  three 
learned  and  exemplary  priests ;  one  of  whom,  Padre 
Martinez,  landed  upon  the  coast  with  some  of  the 
crew,  and  being  unable  to  regain  the  vessel,  coasted 
along  to  St.  George  Island,  where  he  was  attacked 
and  murdered  by  the  Indians,  with  a  number  of  his 
companions. 

The  following  year  was  principally  occupied  by 
Menendez,  in  strengthening  his  fortifications  at  his 
three  forts,  in  visiting  the  Indian  chiefs  at  their 
towns,  and  exploring  the  country.  One  of  his  expe 
ditions  went  as  far  north  as  the  thirty-seventh  degree 
of  latitude  by  sea,  and  another  went  to  the  foot  of  the 
Apalachian  Mountains,  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
leagues,  and  established  a  fort.  The  former  was 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  101 

about  the  mouth  of  the  Chesapeake,  called  the  Santa 
Maria ;  *  and  the  land  expedition,  probably  to  the  up- 
country  of  Georgia,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Rome. 

All  attempts  at  pacifying  their  warlike  neighbor, 
were  as  fruitless  as  their  attempts  to  subjugate  him  ; 
whether  in  artifice  and  duplicity,  in  open  warfare, 
or  secret  ambush,  he  was  more  than  equal  to  the 
Adelantado,  and  was  a  worthy  ancestor  of  the  mod 
ern  Seminole, — never  present  when  looked  for,  and 
never  absent  when  an  opportunity  of  striking  a  blow 
o  ccurred. 

The  Adelantado  having  had  built  an  extremely 
slight  vessel  of  less  than  twenty  tons,  called  a  frigate, 
concluded  to  visit  Spain,  and  ran  in  seventeen  days 
to  the  Azores,  sailing  seventy  leagues  per  day,  an 
exploit  not  often  equaled  in  modern  times.  He  was 
received  with  great  joy  in  Spain,  and  the  king 
treated  him  with  much  consideration.  The  Adelan 
tado  felt  great  anxiety  to  return  to  his  colony,  and 
deprecated  the  delays  of  the  court,  fearing  the  result 
of  the  indignation  at  his  cruelty  to  the  Huguenots, 
which,  says  his  chronicler,  increased  day  by  day.f 

*  Pensacola  Bay  was  also  so  called. 
f  Ensayo  :  Cron.  133. 


103  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 


CHAPTER    X. 

THE  NOTABLE  REVENGE  OF  DOMINIC  DE  GOURGUES— RETURN 
OF  MENENDEZ— INDIAN  MISSION— 1568. 

WHILE  Menendez  thus  remained  at  the  Spanish 
court  urging  the  completion  of  his  business,  seeking 
compensation  for  the  great  expenditures  which  he 
had  made  in  the  king's  service,  and  vindicating  him 
self  from  the  accusations  which  had  been  preferred 
against  him, — the  revenge,  the  distant  murmurs  of 
which  had  already  reached  his  ears,  fell  upon  the 
Spaniards  on  the  St.  Johns. 

Dominic  de  Gourgues,  one  of  those  soldiers  of  for 
tune,  who  then  abounded  throughout  Europe,  took 
upon  himself  the  expression  of  the  indignation  with 
which  the  French  nation  viewed  the  slaughter  of 
of  their  countrymen.  From  motives  of  policy,  or 
from  feelings,  still  less  creditable,  the  French  court 
ignored  the  event ;  but  it  rankled  nevertheless  in  the 
national  heart,  and  many  a  secret  vow  of  revenge 
was  breathed,  the  low  whispers  of  which  reached 
even  the  confines  of  the  Spanish  court.  Conscience, 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  103 

and  the  knowledge  that  the  sentiment  of  the  age  was 
against  him,  made  Menendez  from  the  moment  of 
his  success  exceedingly  anxious  lest  well-merited 
retribution  should  fall  upon  his  own  colony.  He 
guarded  against  it  in  every  way  in  his  power :  he 
strengthened  all  his  posts  ;  he  erected  for  the  protec 
tion  of  San  Matteo,  formerly  Fort  Caroline,  two  small 
forts  on  either  side  of  the  entrance  of  the  river,  at 
the  points  now  known  as  Batten  Island  and  Mayport 
Mills.  He  placed  large  garrisons  at  each  post,  and 
had  made  such  arrangements  against  surprise  or  open 
attack  upon  his  forts,  that  Father  Mendoza  boasted 
that  "half  of  all  France  could  not  take  them." 

De  Gourgues,  with  three  vessels  and  about  two 
hundred  and  fifty  chosen  men  animated  with  like 
feelings  with  himself,  appeared  in  April,  1568,  off 
the  mouth  of  the  St.  Johns.  The  Spanish  fort  re 
ceived  his  vessels  writh  a  salute,  supposing  them  to  be 
under  the  flag  of  Spain.  De  Gourgues  returned  the 
salute,  thus  confirming  their  error.  He  then  en 
tered  the  St.  Marys,  called  the  Somme,  and  was  met 
by  a  large  concourse  of  Indians,  friendly  to  the 
French  and  bitterly  hostile  to  the  Spaniards,  at  the 
head  of  whom  was  the  stern  and  uncompromising 
Saturioura.  Their  plans  were  quickly  formed,  and 
immediately  carried  into  execution.  Their  place  of 
rendezvous  was  the  Fort  George  Inlet,  called  by  them 


THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

the  Sarabay  ;  and  they  traversed  that  island  at  low 
tide,  fell  suddenly  upon  the  fort  at  Batten  Island 
on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  completely  surpris 
ing  it.  The  force  occupying  the  Spanish  forts 
amounted  to  four  hundred  men,  one  hundred  and 
twenty  of  whom  occupied  the  two  forts  at  the  mouth 
of  the  river,  and  the  remainder  Fort  Caroline.  The 
French  with  their  Indian  allies  approached  the  fort 
on  the  north  side  of  the  river  at  day-break.  Hav 
ing  waded  the  intervening  marsh  and  creek  to  the 
great  damage  of  their  feet  and  legs  by  reason  of  the 
oyster  banks,  they  arrived  within  two  hundred  yards 
of  the  post  when  they  were  discovered  by  the  sen 
tinel  upon  the  platform  of  the  fort ;  who  immediately 
cried,  "  to  arms,"  and  discharged  twice  at  the  French 
a  culverin  which  had  been  taken  at  Fort  Caroline. 
Before  he  could  load  it  a  third  time  the  brave  Ola- 
tocara  leaped  upon  him,  and  killed  him  with  a  pike. 
Gourgues  then  charging  in,  the  garrison  by  this  time 
alarmed  rushed  out,  armed  hastily  and  seeking  es 
cape  ;  another  part  of  Gourgues'  force  coming  up, 
inclosed  the  Spaniards  between  them,  and  all  but 
fifteen  of  the  garrison  perished  on  the  spot ;  the  others 
were  taken  prisoners,  only  to  be  reserved  for  the 
summary  vengeance  which  the  French  leader  medi 
tated. 

The  Spanish  garrison  in  the  other  fort  kept  up 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  105 

in  the  mean  time  a  brisk  cannonade,  which  incom 
moded  the  assailants,  who  however  soon  managed  to 
point  the  pieces  of  the  fort  they  had  taken ;  and 
under  the  cover  of  this  fire  the  French  crossed  to  the 
other  fort,  their  Indian  allies  in  great  numbers 
swimming  with  them.  The  garrison  of  sixty  men, 
panic-struck,  made  no  attempt  at  resistance,  but  fled, 
endeavoring  to  reach  the  main  fort ;  being  inter 
cepted  by  the  Indians  in  one  direction,  and  by  the 
French  in  another,  but  few  made  good  their  escape. 
These,  arriving  at  Fort  Caroline,  carried  an  exagger 
ated  account  of  the  number  of  their  assailants. 

De  Gourgues  at  once  pushed  forward  to  attack 
Forfc  Caroline,  while  its  defenders  were  terrified  at  the 
suddenness  of  his  attack,  and  the  supposed  strength 
of  his  force.  Upon  his  arrival  near  the  fort,  the 
Spanish  commander  sent  out  a  detachment  of  sixty 
men,  to  make  a  reconnoisance.  De  Gourgues  skill 
fully  interposed  a  body  of  his  own  men  with  a  large 
number  of  the  Indians  between  the  reconnoitering 
party  and  the  fort,  and  then  with  his  main  force 
charged  upon  them  in  front ;  when  the  Spaniards 
turning  to  seek  the  shelter  of  the  fort,  were  met  by 
the  force  in  their  rear,  and  were  all  either  killed  or 
taken  prisoners.  Seeing  this  misfortune,  the  Spanish 
commander  despaired  of  being  able  to  hold  the  for 
tress,  and  determined  to  make  a  timely  retreat  to  St. 
8 


106  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

Augustine.  In  attempting  this,  most  of  his  followers 
fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Indians,  and  were  slain  upon 
the  spot ;  the  commandant  with  a  few  others  alone 
escaped. 

De  Gourgues,  now  completely  successful  in  making 
retaliation  for  the  fate  of  his  countrymen  on  the  same 
spot  where  they  had  suffered,  on  the  same  tree  which 
had  borne  the  bodies  of  the  Huguenots  caused  his 
prisoners  to  be  suspended ;  and  as  Men  end ez  had  on 
the  former  occasion  erected  a  tablet  that  they  had 
been  punished  "not  as  Frenchmen  but  as  Luther 
ans,"  so  De  Gourgues  in  like  manner  erected  an 
inscription  that  he  had  done  this  to  them  "not  as  to 
Spaniards,  nor  as  to  outcasts,  lut  as  to  traitors, 
thieves,  and  murderers.'1'1 ' 

After  inducing  the  Indians  to  destroy  the  forts, 
and  to  raze  them  to  the  ground,  he  set  sail  for 
France,  arriving  safely  without  further  adventure. 

His  conduct  was  at  the  time  disavowed  and  cen 
sured  by  the  French  court;  and  the  Spanish  ambas 
sador  had  the  assurance,  in  the  name  of  that  master 
who  had  publicly  declared  his  approval  of  the  con 
duct  of  Menendez,  to  demand  the  surrender  of  De 
Gourgues  to  his  vengeance.  The  brave  captain, 
however  the  crown  might  seem  to  disapprove,  was 

*    Ternaux  Compans,  p.  357. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  107 

secretly  sustained  and  protected  by  many  distin 
guished  persons  official  and  private,  and  by  the  mass 
of  the  people ;  to  whom  his  boldness,  spirit,  and  signal 
success  were  grateful.  Some  years  afterwards,  he 
was  restored  to  the  favor  of  his  sovereign,  and  ap 
pointed  admiral  of  the  fleet. 

That  De  Gourgues  deserves  censure,  cannot  be 
denied ;  but  there  will  always  exist  an  admiration 
for  his  courage  and  intrepid  valor,  with  a  sympathy 
for  the  bitter  provocations  under  which  he  acted, 
both  personal  and  national ;  a  sympathy  not  shared 
with  Men  end  ez,  who  visited  his  wrath  upon  the 
religious  opinions  of  men,  while  De  Gourgues  was 
the  unauthorized  avenger  of  undoubted  crime  and 
inhumanity.  Both  acted  in  violation  of  the  pure 
spirit  of  that  Christianity  which  they  alike  professed 
to  revere,  under  the  same  form. 

While  these  scenes  were  enacting  on  the  St.  Johns, 
Menendez  was  upon  his  way  to  his  colonies,  where 
he  first  heard  of  the  descent  of  De  Gourgues,  then 
on  his  way  back'  to  France.  The  Adelantado  upon 
his  arrival  found  his  troops  hungry  and  naked,  and 
their  relations  with  the  Indians  worse  than  ever. 
Having  made  such  arrangements  as  were  in  his 
power,  he  returned  to  Havana,  to  further  his  plans 
for  introducing  Christianity  among  the  Indians  ;  to 
which,  to  his  credit  be  it  said,  he  devoted  the  greater 


103  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

share  of  his  time  and  attention.  Father  Rogel  ap 
plied  himself  to  learning  their  language,  with  great 
success ;  and  an  institution  was  established  in  Havana 
especially  for  their  instruction.  In  the  Ensayo 
Cronologica,  there  is  set  forth  in  full,  a  rescript  ad 
dressed  by  Pope  Pius  V.,  to  Menendez,  conveying  to 
him  the  acknowledgments  of  his  Holiness,  for  the 
zeal  and  loyalty  he  had  exhibited,  and  his  labors  in 
carrying  the  faith  to  the  Indians,  and  urging  him 
strongly  to  see  to  it,  that  his  Indian  converts  should 
not  be  scandalized  by  the  vicious  lives  of  their  white 
brethren  who  claimed  to  be  Christians. 

A  small  party  of  Spaniards,  as  has  already  been 
mentioned,  accompanied  by  a  priest,  De  Quiros,  had 
been  left  upon  the  Chesapeake,  and  under  the  auspices 
of  a  young  converted  chief,  who  had  been  some  time 
with  the  Spaniards  in  Havana  and  Florida,  anticipa 
ted  a  more  easy  access  to  the  Indian  tribes  in  that 
region.  Another  priest,  with  ten  associates,  went 
the  following  year  ;  when,  after  they  had  sent  away 
their  vessel,  they  discovered  that  their  predecessor 
had  been  murdered,  through  the  treachery  of  the 
renegade  apostate ;  and  they  themselves  fell  shortly 
victims  to  his  perfidy.  Menendez  dispatched  a  third 
vessel  there ;  when  the  fate  of  the  two  former  parties 
was  ascertained,  and  he  went  in  person  to  chastise  the 
murderers  ;  he  succeeded  in  capturing  six  or  seven, 


PEDRO    MENENDEZ    D  IL    AVILE 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  109 

who,  it  is  said  (rather  improbably  I  think),  confessed 
themselves  to  have  been  implicated  in  the  massacre. 
Menendez,  in  his  summary  and  sailor-like  way, 
ordered  their  execution  at  the  yard-arm  of  his  vessel. 
The  Cronicle  says,  that  they  were  first  converted 
and  baptized,  by  the  zeal  of  Father  Rogel,  before  the 
sentence  was  carried  into  execution.  A  long  period 
elapsed  before  any  further  efforts  were  made  in  this 
quarter  to  establish  a  colony ;  and  it  was  then  accom 
plished  by  the  English.  In  consequence  of  these 
temporary  establishments,  however,  the  Spanish 
crown,  for  a  long  period,  claimed  the  whole  of  the 
intervening  country,  as  lying  within  its  Province  of 
Florida. 

The  annals  of  the  city  during  the  remainder  of 
the  life  of  Menendez,  present  only  the  usual  vicissi 
tudes  of  new  settlements, — the  alternations  of  supply 
and  want,  occasional  disaffections,  and  petty  annoy 
ances. 

Menendez  was  the  recipient  from  his  court  of  new 
honors  from  time  to  time,  and  had  been  appointed 
the  grand  admiral  of  the  Spanish  Armada ;  when,  in 
September,  1574,  he  was  suddenly  carried  off  by  a 
fever,  at  the  age  of  fifty-five.  It  is  a  singular  coin 
cidence,  that  De  Gourgues,  five  years  afterwards, 
was  carried  off  in  a  similar  manner,  just  after  his 
appointment  as  admiral  of  the  French  fleet.  A 


110  THE    HISTORY    AKD    ANTIQUITIES 

splendid  monument  in  the  church  of  San  Nicolas,  at 
Aviles,  was  erected  to  the  memory  of  Menendez, 
with  the  following  inscription : 

"HERE  LIES  BURIED  THE  ILLUSTRIOUS  CAVALIER, 
PEDRO  MENENDEZ  DE  AVILES,  A  NATIVE  OF  THIS 
CITY,  ADELANTADO  OF  THE  PROVINCES  OF  FLORIDA, 
KNIGHT  COMMANDER  OF  SANTA  CRUZ  OF  THE  ORDER 
OF  SANTIAGO,  AND  CAPTAIN  GENERAL  OF  THE  OCE 
ANIC  SEAS  AND  OF  THE  ARMADA  WHICH  HIS  ROYAL 

HIGHNESS  COLLECTED  AT  SANTANDER  IN  THE  YEAR 
1574,  WHERE  HE  DIED  ON  THE  l^TH  OF  SEPTEMBER 
OF  THAT  YEAR,  IN  THE  55TH  YEAR  OF  HIS  AGE. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  Ill 


CHAPTER   XI. 

SIR  FRANCIS  DRAKE'S  ATTACK  UPON  ST.  AUGUSTINE— ESTAB 
LISHMENT  OF  MISSIONS— MASSACRE  OF  MISSIONARIES  AT 
ST.  AUGUSTINE— 1586— 1638. 

NINE  years  had  elapsed  from  the  death  of  Meiien- 
dez,  and  the  colony  at  St.  Augustine  had  slowly  pro 
gressed  into  the  settlement  of  a  small  town  ;  but  the 
eclat  and  importance  which  the  presence  of  Menen- 
dez  had  given  it,  were  much  lessened  ;  when,  in  1586, 
Sir  Francis  Drake,  with  a  fleet  returning  from  South 
America,  discovered  the  Spanish  look-out  upon 
Anastasia  Island,  and  sent  boats  ashore  to  ascertain 
something  in  reference  to  it.  Marching  up  the  shore, 
they  discovered  across  the  bay,  a  fort,  and  further 
up  a  town  built  of  wood. 

Proceeding  towards  the  fort,  which  bore  the  name 
of  San  Juan  de  Pinas,  some  guns  were  fired  upon 
them  from  it,  and  they  retired  towards  their  vessel ; 
the  same  evening  a  fifer  made  his  appearance,  and 
informed  them  that  he  was  a  Frenchman,  detained 
a  prisoner  there,  and  that  the  Spaniards  had  aban 
doned  their  fort ;  and  he  offered  to  conduct  them 


112  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

over.  Upon  this  information  they  crossed  the  river 
and  found  the  fort  abandoned  as  they  had  been 
informed,  and  took  possession  of  it  without  opposi 
tion.  It  was  built  entirely  of  wood,  and  only  sur 
rounded  by  a  wall  or  pale  formed  of  the  bodies  or 
trunks  of  large  trees,  set  upright  in  the  earth ;  for, 
says  the  narrative,  it  was  not  at  that  time  inclosed 
by  a  ditch,  as  it  had  been  but  lately  begun  by  the 
Spaniards.  The  platforms  were  made  of  the  bodies 
of  large  pine  trees  (of  which  there  are  plenty  here), 
laid  horizontally  across  each  other,  with  earth 
rammed  in  to  fill  up  the  vacancies.  Fourteen  brass 
cannon  were  found  in  the  fort,  and  there  was  left 
behind  the  treasure  chest,  containing  ,£2,000  sterling, 
designed  for  the  payment  of  the  garrison,  which 
consisted  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  men.  Whether 
the  massive,  iron-bound  mahogany  chest,  still  pre 
served  in  the  old  fort  is  the  same  which  fell  into  the 
hands  of  Drake,  is  a  question  for  antiquaries  to  de 
cide  ;  its  ancient  appearance  might  well  justify  the 
supposition. 

On  the  following  day,  Drake's  forces  marched 
towards  the  town,  but  owing,  it  is  said,  to  heavy 
rains,  were  obliged  to  return  and  go  in  the  boats. 
On  their  approach,  the  Spaniards  fled  into  the  coun 
try.  It  is  said,  in  Barcia,  that  a  Spaniard  concealed 
in  the  bushes,  fired  at  the  sergeant  major  and 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  113 

wounded  him,  and  then  ran  up  and  dispatched  him, 
and  that  in  revenge  for  this  act,  Drake  burnt  their 
buildings  and  destroyed  their  gardens.  The  garri 
son  and  inhabitants  retired  to  fort  San  Matteo,  on 
the  St.  Johns  river.  Barcia  says  that  the  population 
of  the  place  was  then  increasing  considerably,  and 
that  it  possessed  a  hall  of  justice,  parochial  church, 
and  other  buildings,  together  with  gardens  in  the 
rear  of  the  town. 

An  engraved  plan  or  view  of  Drake's  descent 
upon  St.  Augustine,  published  after  his  return  to 
England,  represents  an  octagonal  fort  between  two 
streams;  at  the  distance  of  half  a  mile  another 
stream ;  beyond  that  the  town,  with  a  look-out  and 
two  religious  houses,  one  of  which  is  a  church  and 
the  other  probably  the  house  of  the  Franciscans,  who 
had  shortly  before  established  a  house  of  their  order 
there.  The  town  contains  three  squares  lengthwise, 
and  four  in  width,  with  gardens  on  the  west  side. 

Some  doubt  has  been  thrown  on  the  actual  site  of 
the  first  settlement,  by  this  account ;  but  I  think  it 
probably  stood  considerably  to  the  south  of  the 
present  public  square,  between  the  barracks  and  the 
powder-house.  Perhaps  the  Maria  Sanchez  creek  may 
have  then  communicated  with  the  bay  near  its  present 
head,  in  wet  weather  and  at  high  tides  isolating  the 
fort  from  the  town.  The  present  north  ditch  may 


THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

have  been  the  bed  of  a  tide  creek,  and  thus  would 
correspond  to  the  appearance  presented  by  the  sketch. 
It  is  well  known  that  the  north  end  of  the  city  was 
built  at  a  much  later  period  than  the  southern,  and 
that  the  now  vacant  space  below  the  barracks,  was 
once  occupied  with  buildings.  Buildings  and  fields 
are  shown  upon  Anastasia  Island,  opposite  the  town. 
The  relative  position  of  the  town  with  reference  to 
the  entrance  of  the  harbor  is  correctly  shown  on  the 
plan ;  and  there  seems  no  sufficient  ground  to  doubt 
the  identity  of  the  present  town  with  the  ancient 
locality. 

The  garrison  and  country  were  then  under  the 
command  of  Don  Pedro  Menendez,  a  nephew  of  the 
Adelantado;  who,  after  the  English  squadron  sailed, 
having  received  assistance  from  Havana,  began,  it  is 
said,  to  rebuild  the  city,  and  made  great  efforts  to 
increase  its  population,  and  to  induce  the  Indians  to 
settle  in  its  neighborhood. 

In  1592,  twelve  Franciscan  missionaries  arrived  at 
St.  Augustine,  with  their  Superior,  Fray  Jean  de 
Silva,  and  placed  themselves  under  the  charge  of 
Father  Francis  Manon,  Warden  of  the  convent  of 
St.  Helena.  One  of  them,  a  Mexican,  Father  Fran 
cis  Panja,  drew  up  in  the  language  of  the  Yemasees 
his  "  Abridgment  of  Christian  Doctrine,"  said  to  be 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  115 

the  first  work  compiled  in  any  of  our  Indian  lan 
guages. 

The  Franciscan  Father  Corpa,  established  a  Mis 
sion  house  for  the  Indians  at  Talomato,  in  the  north 
west  portion  of  the  city  of  St.  Augustine,  where  there 
was  then  an  Indian  village.  Father  Bias  de  Rodri 
guez,  also,  called  Montes,  had  an  Indian  Church  at  a 
village  of  the  Indians,  called  Tapoqui,  situated  on  the 
creek  called  Cano  de  la  Leche,  north  of  the  fort ; 
and  the  church  bearing  the  name  of  "  Our  Lady  of 
the  Milk  "  was  situated  on  the  elevated  ground  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  north  of  the  fort,  near  the  creek. 
A  stone  church  existed  at  this  locality  as  late  as 
1795,  and  the  crucifix  belonging  to  it  is  preserved  in 
the  Roman  Catholic  Church  at  St.  Augustine. 

These  missions  proceeded  with  considerable  appa 
rent  success,  large  numbers  of  the  Indians  being 
received  and  instructed  both  at  this  and  other  mis 
sions. 

Among  the  converts  at  the  mission  of  Talomato, 
was  the  son  of  the  cacique  of  the  province  of  Guale, 
a  proud  and  high-spirited  young  leader,  who  by  no 
means  submitted  to  the  requirements  of  his  spiritual 
fathers,  but  indulged  in  excesses  which  scandalized 
his  profession.  Father  Corpa,  after  trying  private 
remonstrances  and  warnings  in  vain,  thought  it  ne 
cessary  to  administer  to  him  a  public  rebuke.  This 


116  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

aroused  the  pride  of  the  young  chief,  and  he  sud 
denly  left  the  mission,  determined  upon  revenge. 
He  gathered  from  the  interior  a  band  of  warriors, 
whom  he  inspired  with  his  own  hatred  against  the 
missionaries.  Returning  to  Talomato  with  his  fol 
lowers  under  the  cover  of  night,  he  crept  up  to  the 
mission  house,  burst  open  the  chapel  doors,  and  slew 
the  devoted  Father  Corpa  while  at  prayer ;  then 
severed  his  head  from  his  body,  set  it  upon  a  pike 
staff,  and  threw  his  body  out  into  the  forest  where 
it  could  never  afterwards  be  found.  The  scene  of 
this  tragedy  was  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  present 
Roman  Catholic  cemetery  of  St.  Augustine. 

As  soon  as  this  occurrence  became  known  in  the 
Indian  village,  all  was  excitement ;  some  of  the  most 
devoted  bewailing  the  death  of  their  spiritual  father, 
while  others  dreaded  the  consequences  of  so  rash  an 
act,  and  shrunk  with  terror  from  the  vengeance  of 
the  Spaniards,  which  they  foresaw  would  soon  follow. 
The  young  chief  of  Guale  gathered  them  around 
him,  and  in  earnest  tones  addressed  them.  "  Yes," 
said  he,  "  the  friar  is  dead.  It  would  not  have  been 
done,  if  he  would  have  allowed  us  to  live  as  we  did 
before  we  became  Christians.  "We  desire  to  return 
to  our  ancient  customs ;  and  we  must  provide  for  our 
defense  against  the  punishment  which  will  be  hurled 
upon  us  by  the  Governor  of  Florida,  which,  if  it 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  117 

be  allowed  to  reach  us,  will  be  as  rigorous  for  this 
single  friar,  as  if  we  had  killed  them  all.  For  the 
same  power  which  we  possess  to  destroy  this  one 
priest,  we  have  to  destroy  them  all." 

His  followers  approved  of  what  had  been  done, 
and  said  there  was  no  doubt  but  that  the  same  ven 
geance  would  fall  upon  them  for  the  death  of  the 
one,  as  for  all. 

He  then  resumed.  "  Since  we  shall  receive  equal 
punishment  for  the  death  of  this  one,  as  though  we 
had  killed  them  all,  let  us  regain  the  liberty  of  which 
these  friars  have  robbed  us,  with  their  promises  of 
good  things  which  we  have  not  yet  seen,  but  which 
they  seek  to  keep  us  in  hope  of,  while  they  accumu 
late  upon  us  who  are  called  Christians,  injuries  and 
disgusts,  making  us  quit  our  wives,  restricting  us  to 
one  only,  and  prohibiting  us  from  changing  her. 
They  prevent  us  from  having  our  balls,  banquets, 
feasts,  celebrations,  games,  and  contests,  so  that  being 
deprived  of  them,  we  lose  our  ancient  valor  and  skill 
which  we  inherited  from  our  ancestors.  Although 
they  oppress  us  with  labor,  refusing  to  grant  even  the 
respite  of  a  few  days,  and  although  we  are  disposed 
to  do  all  they  require  from  us,  they  are  not  satisfied ; 
but  for  everything  they  reprimand  us,  injuriously  treat 
us,  oppress  us,  lecture  us,  call  us  bad  Christians,  and 
deprive  us  of  all  the  pleasures  which  our  fathers 


118  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

enjoyed,  in  the  hope  that  they  would  give  us  heaven ; 
by  these  frauds  subjecting  us  and  holding  us  under 
their  absolute  control.  And  what  have  we  to  hope 
except  to  be  made  slaves  ?  If  we  now  put  them  all 
to  death,  we  shall  destroy  these  excrescenses,  and 
force  the  governor  to  treat  us  well." 

The  majority  were  carried  away  by  his  address, 
and  rung  out  the  war-cry  of  death  and  defiance. 
While  still  eager  for  blood,  their  chief  led  them  to 
the  Indian  town  of  Tapoqui,  the  mission  of  Father 
Montes,  on  the  Cano  de  la  Leche  ;  tumultuously  rush 
ing  in,  they  informed  the  missionary  of  the  fate  of 
Father  Corpa,  and  that  they  sought  his  own  life  and 
those  of  all  his  order ;  and  then  with  uplifted  weapons 
bade  him  prepare  to  die.  He  reasoned  and  remon 
strated  with  them,  portraying  the  folly  and  wicked 
ness  of  their  intentions,  that  the  vengeance  of  the 
Spaniards  would  surely  overtake  them,  and  implored 
them  with  tears,  that  for  their  own  sakes  rather  than 
his,  they  should  pause  in  their  mad  designs.  But  all 
in  vain ;  they  were  alike  insensible  to  his  eloquence, 
and  his  tears,  and  pressed  forward  to  surround  him. 
Finding  all  else  vain,  he  begged  as  a  last  favor  that 
he  should  be  permitted  to  celebrate  mass  before  he 
died.  In  this  he  was  probably  actuated  in  part  by 
the  hope  that  their  fierce  hatred  might  be  assuaged 
by  the  sight  of  the  ceremonies  of  their  faith,  or  that 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  119 

the  delay  might  afford  time  for  succor  from  the 
adjoining  garrison. 

The  permission  was  given  ;  and  there  for  the  last 
time  the  worthy  Father  put  on  his  robes,  which 
might  well  be  termed  his  robes  of  sacrifice.  The 
wild  and  savage  crowd,  thirsting  for  his  blood, 
reclined  upon  the  floor  and  looked  on  in  sullen 
silence,  awaiting  the  conclusion  of  the  rites.  The 
priest  alone,  standing  before  the  altar,  proceeded 
with  this  most  sad  and  solemn  mass,  then  cast  his 
eyes  to  heaven  and  knelt  in  private  supplication  ; 
where  the  next  moment  he  fell  under  the  blows  of 
his  cruel  foes,  bespattering  the  altar  at  which  he 
ministered,  with  his  own  life's  blood.  His  crushed 
remains  were  thrown  into  the  fields,  that  they  might 
serve  for  the  fowls  of  the  air  or  the  beasts  of  the 
forest ;  but  not  one  would  approach  it,  except  a  dog, 
which,  rushing  forward  to  lay  hold  upon  the  body, 
fell  dead  upon  the  spot,  says  the  ancient  chronicle  ; 
and  an  old  Christian  Indian,  recognizing  it,  gave  it 
sepulture  in  the  forest. 

From  thence  the  ferocious  young  chief  of  Guale, 
led  his  followers  against  several  missions,  in  other 
parts  of  the  country,  which  he  attacked  and  de 
stroyed,  together  with  their  attendant  clergy.  Thus 
upon  the  soil  of  the  ancient  city,  was  shed  the  blood 
of  Christian  martyrs,  who  were  laboring  with  a  zeal 


120  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

well  worthy  of  emulation,  to  carry  the  truths  of  reli 
gion  to  the  native  tribes  of  Florida.  Two  hundred 
and  sixty  years  have  passed  away  since  these  sad 
scenes  were  enacted ;  but  we  cannot  even  now  repress 
a  tear  of  sympathy  and  a  feeling  of  admiration  for 
those  self-denying  missionaries  of  the  cross,  who 
sealed  their  faith  with  their  blood,  and  fell  victims 
to  their  energy  and  devotion.  The  spectacle  of  the 
dying  priest  struck  down  at  the  altar,  attired  in  his 
sacred  vestments,  and  perhaps  imploring  pardon 
upon  his  murderers,  cannot  fail  to  call  up  in  the 
heart  of  the  most  insensible,  something  more  than  a 
passing  emotion. 

The  zeal  of  the  Franciscans  was  only  increased  by 
this  disaster,  and  each  succeeding  year  brought 
additions  to  their  number.  They  pushed  their  mis 
sions  into  the  interior  of  the  country  so  rapidly  that 
in  less  than  two  years  they  had  established  through 
the  principal  towns  of  the  Indians,  no  less  than 
twenty  mission  houses.  The  presumed  remains  of 
these  establishments  are  still  occasionally  to  be  found 
throughout  the  interior  of  the  country. 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  121 


CHAPTER    XII. 

SUBJECTION  OF  THE  APALACHIAN.  INDIANS— CONSTRUCTION 
OF  THE  FORT,  SEA  WALL,  &c.~  1638— 1700. 

IN  the  year  1638,  hostilities  were  entered  into 
between  the  Spanish  settlements  on  the  coast,  and 
the  Apalachian  Indians,  who  occupied  the  country 
in  the  neighborhood  of  the  river  Suwanee.  The 
Spaniards  soon  succeeded  in*  subduing  their  Indian 
foes  ;  and  in  1640,  large  numbers  of  the  Apalachian 
Indians  were  brought  to  St.  Augustine,  and  in 
alleged  punishment  for  their  outbreak,  and  with  a 
sagacious  eye  to  the  convenience  of  the  arrangement, 
were  forced  to  labor  upon  the  public  works  and  for 
tifications  of  the  city.  At  this  period  the  English 
settlements  along  the  coast  to  the  northward,  had 
begun  to  be  formed,  much  to  the  uneasiness  and 
displeasure  of  the  Spanish  crown,  which  for  a  long 
period  claimed,  by  virtue  of  exploration  and  occu 
pation,  as  well  as  by  the  ancient  papal  grant  of 
Alexander,  all  the  eastern  coast  of  the  United 
States.  Their  missionaries  had  penetrated  Virginia 
9 


122  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

before  the  settlement  at  Jamestown ;  and  they  had 
built  a  fort  in  South  Carolina,  and  kept  up  a  garrison 
for  some  years  in  it.  But  the  Spanish  government 
had  become  too  feeble  to  compete  with  either  the 
English  or  the  French  on  the  seas ;  and  with  the  loss 
of  their  celebrated  Armada,  perished  for  ever  their 
pretensions  as  a  naval  power.  They  were  therefore 
forced  to  look  to  the  safety  of  their  already  estab 
lished  settlements  in  Florida ;  and  the  easy  capture 
of  the  fort  at  St.  Augustine  by  the  passing  squadron 
of  Drake,  evinced  the  necessity  of  works  of  a  much 
more  formidable  character. 

It  is  evident  that  the  fort,  or  castle  as  it  was 
usually  designated,  Ifad  been  then  commenced, 
although  its  form  was  afterwards  changed ;  and  for 
sixty  years  subsequently,  these  unfortunate  Apala- 
chian  Indians  were  compelled  to  labor  upon  the 
works,  until  in  1680,  upon  the  recommendation  of 
their  mission  Fathers,  they  were  relieved  from  further 
compulsory  labor,  with  the  understanding  that  in 
case  of  necessity  they  would  resume  their  labors. 

In  1648,  St.  Augustine  is  described  to  have 
contained  more  than  three  hundred  householders 
(vetinoe),  a  flourishing  monastery  of  the  order  of  St. 
Francis  with  fifty  Franciscans,  men  very  zealous  for 
the  conversion  of  the  Indians,  and  regarded  by  their 
countrymen  with  the  highest  veneration.  Besides 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  123 

these  there  were  in  the  city  alone,  a  vicar,  a  paro 
chial  curate,  a  superior  sacristan,  and  a  chaplain 
attached  to  the  castle.  The  parish  church  was  built 
of  wood,  the  Bishop  of  Cuba,  it  is  said,  not  being 
able  to  afford  anything  better,  his  whole  income 
being  but  four  hundred  pezos  per  annum,  which  he 
shared  with  Florida;  and  sometimes  he  expended 
much  more  than  his  receipts. 

In  1665,  Captain  Davis,  one  of  the  English  bucca 
neers  and  freebooters  (then  very  numerous  in  the 
West  Indies),  with  a  fleet  of  seven  or  eight  vessels 
came  on  the  coast  from  Jamaica,  to  intercept  the 
Spanish  plate  fleet  on  its  return  from  New  Spain  to 
Europe ;  but  being  disappointed  in  this  scheme,  he 
proceeded  along  the  coast  of  Florida,  and  came  off 
St.  Augustine,  where  he  landed  and  marched  directly 
upon  the  town,  which  he  sacked  and  plundered, 
without  meeting  the  least  opposition  or  resistance 
from  the  Spaniards,  although  they  had  then  a  garri 
son  of  two  hundred  men  in  the  fort,  which  at  that 
time  was  an  octagon,  fortified  and  defended  by  round 
towers. 

The  fortifications,  if  this  account  be  true,  were 
probably  then  very  incomplete ;  and  with  a  vastly 
inferior  force  it  is  not  surprising  that  they  did  not 
undertake  what  could  only  have  been  an  ineffectual 
resistance.  It  does  not  appear  that  the  fort  was 


THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

taken ;  and  the  inhabitants  retired  probably  within 
its  inclosure  with  their  valuables.* 

In  the  Spanish  account  of  the  various  occurrences 
in  this  country,  it  is  mentioned  that  in  1681,  "the 
English  having  examined  a  province  of  Florida,  dis 
tant  twelve  leagues  from  another  called  New  Castle, 
where  the  air  is  pleasant,  the  climate  mild,  and  the 
lands  very  fertile,  called  it  Silvania;  and  that 
knowing  these  advantages,  a  Quaker,  or  Shaker 
(a  sect  barbarous,  impudent,  and  abominable), 
called  William  Penn,  obtained  a  grant  of  it  from 
Charles  II.,  King  of  England,  and  made  great  efforts 
to  colonize  it."  Such  was  the  extent  then  claimed 
for  the  province  of  Florida,  and  such  the  opinion 
entertained  of  the  Quakers. 

In  1681,  Don  Juan  Marquez  Cabrera,  applied 
himself  at  once,  upon  his  appointment  to  the  gover- 
ship  of  Florida,  to  finishing  the  castle ;  and  collected 
large  quantities  of  stone,  lime,  timber,  and  iron,  more 
than  sufficient  subsequently  to  complete  it.  About 
this  period,  a  new  impulse  was  given  to  the  extension 
of  the  missions  for  converting  the  Indians ;  and 
large  reinforcements  of  the  clerical  force  were  re 
ceived  from  Mexico,  Havana,  and  Spain  ;  and  many 


*  I  do  not  find  any  account  of  this  expedition  and  capture  of  St.  Augus 
tine  in  the  Ensayo  Cronologica. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  125 

of  them  received  salaries  from  the  crown.  A  con 
siderable  Indian  town  is  spoken  of  at  this  period, 
as  existing  six  hundred  varas  north  of  St.  Augustine, 
and  called  Macarasi,  which  would  correspond  to  the 
place  formerly  occupied  by  Judge  Douglas  (where, 
in  Multicaulis'  times,  he  built  a  cocoonery),  and  which 
has  long  been  called  Macariz.  Other  parts  of  the 
country  were  known  by  various  names.  Amelia 
Island  was  the  province  of  Guale.  The  southern 
part  of  the  country  was  known  as  the  province  of 
Carlos.  Indian  Kiver  was  the  province  of  Ys. 
Westwardly  was  the  province  of  Apalachie ;  while 
smaller  divisions  were  designated  by  the  names  of 
the  chiefs. 

It  is  hardly  to  be  doubted,  that  the  same  spirit  of 
oppression  towards  the  Indians,  exercised  in  the 
other  colonies  under  Spanish  domination,  existed  in 
Florida.  It  has  been  already  mentioned  that  the 
Apalachians  were  kept  at  labor  upon  the  fortifica 
tions  of  St.  Augustine ;  and  in  1680,  the  Yemasees, 
who  had  always  been  particularly  peaceful  and  man 
ageable,  and  whose  principal  town  was  Macarisqui, 
near  St.  Augustine,  revolted  at  the  rule  exercised 
over  them  by  the  Spanish  authorities  at  St.  Augustine, 
in  consequence  of  the  execution  of  one  of  their  chiefs 
by  the  order  of  the  governor ;  and  six  years  after 
wards  they  made  a  general  attack  upon  the  Span- 


126  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

iards,  drove  them  within  the  walls  of  the  castle,  and 
became  such  mortal  enemies  to  them,  that  they 
never  gave  a  Spaniard  quarter,  waylaying,  and 
invariably  massacring,  any  stragglers  they  could 
intercept  outside  of  the  fort. 

In  1670,  an  English  settlement  was  established 
near  Port  Royal,  South  Carolina,  one  hundred  and 
five  years  subsequent  to  the  settlement  of  St.  Augus 
tine.  The  Spaniards  regarded  it  as  an  infringement 
upon  their  rights ;  and  although  a  treaty,  after  this 
settlement,  had  been  made  between  Spain  and  Eng 
land,  confirming  to  the  latter  all  her  settlements  and 
islands,  yet  as  no  boundaries  or  limits  were  men 
tioned,  their  respective  rights  and  boundaries 
remained  a  subject  of  dispute  for  seventy  years. 

About  16Y5,  the  Spanish  authorities  at  St.  Augus 
tine,  having  intelligence  from  white  servants  who 
fled  to  them,  of  the  discontented  and  miserable 
situation  of  the  colony  in  Carolina,  advanced  with  a 
party  under  arms  as  far  as  the  island  of  St.  Helena, 
to  dislodge  or  destroy  the  settlers.  A  treacherous 
colonist  of  the  name  of  Fitzpatrick,  deserted  to  the 
Spaniards;  but  the  governor,  Sir  John  Yeamans, 
having  received  a  reinforcement,  held  his  ground ; 
and  a  detachment  of  fifty  volunteers  under  Colonel 
Godfrey,  marched  against  the  enemy,  forcing  them 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  127 

to  retire  from  the  Island  of  St.  Helena,  and  retreat 
to  St.  Augustine.* 

Ten  years  afterwards,  three  galleys  sailed  from  St. 
Augustine,  and  attacked  a  Scotch  and  English  set 
tlement  at  Port  Royal,  which  had  been  founded  by 
Lord  Car  dross,  in  1681.  The  settlement  was  weak 
and  unprotected,  and  the  Spaniards  fell  upon  them, 
killing  several,  whipped  many,  plundered  all,  and 
broke  up  the  colony.  Flushed  with  success,  they 
continued  their  depredations  on  Edisto  River,  burn 
ing  the  houses,  wasting  the  plantations,  and  robbing 
the  settlers  ;  and  gnished  their  marauding  expedition 
by  capturing  the  brother  of  Governor  Morton,  and 
burning  him  alive  in  one  of  the  galleys  which  a 
hurricane  had  driven  so  high  upon  land  as  to  make 
it  impossible  to  have  it  re-launched.  Such  at  least  is 
the  English  account  of  the  matter ;  and  they  say  that 
intestine  troubles  alone  prevented  immediate  and  sig 
nal  retaliation  by  the  South  Carolinians,  f 

One  captain  Don  Juan  de  Aila,  went  to  Spain  in 
the  year  1687,  in  his  own  vessel,  to  procure  additional 
forces  and  ammunition  for  the  garrison  at  St.  Augus 
tine.  He  received  the  men  and  munitions  desired ; 


*  Carroll's  S.  C.,  Vol.  1,  p.  62. 

f  Rivers'  S.  C.  Hist.  Coll.   p.  143.    Do.  Appendix,  425.     Carroll's  Coll., 
2d   vol.,  350. 


128  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

and  as  a  reward  for  his  diligence  and  patriotism,  he 
also  received  the  privilege  of  carrying  merchandise, 
duty  free ;  being  also  allowed  to  take  twelve  Spanish 
negroes  for  the  cultivation  of  the  fields  of  Florida, 
of  whom  it  is  said  there  was  a  great  want  in  that 
province.  By  a  mischance,  he  was  only  able  to 
carry  one  negro  there,  with  the  troops  and  other 
cargo,  and  was  received  in  the  city  with  universal 
joy.  This  was  the  first  occasion  of  the  reception  of 
African  slaves ;  although  as  has  been  heretofore  men 
tioned,  it  was  made  a  part  of  the  royal  stipulation 
with  Menendez,  that  he  should  bring  over  five  hun 
dred  negro  slaves. 

Don  Diego  de  Quiroga  y  Losada,  the  governor  of 
Florida  in  1690,  finding  that  the  sea  was  making 
dangerous  encroachments  upon  the  shores  of  the 
town,  and  had  reached  even  the  houses,  threatening 
to  swallow  them  up,  and  render  useless  the  fort  which 
had  cost  so  much  to  put  in  the  state  of  completion  in 
which  it  then  was,  called  a  public  meeting  of  the 
chief  men  and  citizens  of  the  place,  and  proposed  to 
them  that  in  order  to  escape  the  danger  which  men 
aced  them,  and  to  restrain  the  force  of  the  sea,  they 
should  construct  a  wall,  which  should  run  from  the 
castle  and  cover  and  protect  the  city  from  all  dan 
ger  of  the  sea.  The  inhabitants  not  only  approved' 
of  his  proposal,  but  began  the  work  with  so  much 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  129 

zeal,  that  the  soldiers  gave  more  than  seventeen 
hundred  dollars  of  their  wages,  although  they  were 
very  much  behind,  not  having  been  paid  in  six 
years ;  with  which  the  governor  began  to  make  the 
necessary  preparations,  and  sent  forward  a  dispatch 
to  the  home  government  upon  the  subject. 

The  council  of  war  of  the  Indies  approved,  in  the 
following  year,  of  the  work  of  the  sea  wall,  and 
directed  the  viceroy  of  New  Spain  to  furnish  ten 
thousand  dollars  for  it,  and  directed  that  a  plan  and 
estimate  of  the  work  should  be  forwarded.  Quiroga 
was  succeeded  in  the  governorship  of  Florida,  by 
Don  Laureano  de  Torres,  who  went  forward  with 
the  work  of  the  sea  wall,  and  received  for  this  pur 
pose  the  means  furnished  by  the  soldiers,  and  one 
thousand  dollars  more,  which  they  offered  besides 
the  two  thousand  dollars,  and  likewise  six  thousand 
dollars  which  had  come  from  New  Spain,  remitted 
by  the  viceroy,  Count  de  Galleo,  for  the  purpose  of 
building  a  tower,  as  a  look-out  to  observe  the  sur 
rounding  Indian  settlements.  Whether  this  tower 
was  erected,  or  where,  we  have  no  certain  knowl 
edge.  The  towers  erected  on  the  governor's  palace 
and  at  the  northeast  angle  of  the  fort,  were  intended 
as  look-outs  both  sea  and  landward. 

The  statements  made  in  reference  to  the  building 
of  this  wall,  from  the  castle  as  far  as  the  city,  con- 


130  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

firms  the  opinion  previously  expressed,  that  the 
ancient  and  early  settlement  of  the  place  was  south 
of  the  public  square,  as  the  remains  of  the  ancient 
sea  wall  extend  to  the  basin  at  the  Plaza.  The  top 
of  this  old  sea  wall  is  still  visible  along  the  center 
of  Bay  street,  where  it  occasionally  appears  above 
the  level  of  the  street;  and  its  general  plan  and 
arrangement  are  shown  on  several  old  maps  and 
plans  of  the  city.  Upon  a  plan  of  the  city  made 
in  1665,  it  is  represented  as  terminating  in  a  species 
of  break-water  at  the  public  square.  It  is  unneces 
sary  to  add  that  the  present  sea  wall  is  a  much 
superior  structure  to  the  old,  and  extends  above 
twice  the  distance.  Its  cost  is  said  to  have  been 
one  hundred  thousand  dollars,  and  it  was  building 
from  183T  to  1843. 

In  the  year  17 00,  the  work  on  the  sea  wall  had 
progressed  but  slowly,  although  the  governor  had 
employed  thirty  stone-cutters  at  a  time,  and  had 
eight  yoke  of  oxen  drawing  stone  to  the  landing, 
and  two  lime-kilns  all  the  while  at  work.  But  the 
money  previously  provided,  and  considerable  addi 
tional  funds  was  requisite,  resembling  in  this  respect 
its  successor.  The  new  governor,  De  Cuniza,  took 
the  matter  in  hand,  as  he  had  much  experience  in 
fortifications.  The  defenses  of  the  fort  are  spoken 
of  as  being  at  the  time  too  weak  to  resist  artillery, 
and  the  sea  wall  as  being  but  a  slight  work. 


OF    ST     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  131 


CHAPTER    XIII. 


ATTACK   ON  ST.  AUGUSTINE  BY  GOV.  MOORE  OF  SOUTH  CAR 
OLINA—DIFFICULTIES  WITH  TIIE  GEORGIANS.— 1702— 1732. 


HOSTILITIES  had  broken  out  between  England  and 
Spain  in  1702.  The  English  settlements  in  Carolina 
only  numbered  six  or  seven  thousand  inhabitants, 
when  Gov.  Moore,  who  was  an  ambitious  and  ener 
getic  man,  but  with  serious  defects  of  character,  led 
an  invading  force  from  Carolina  against  St.  Augus 
tine.  The  pretense  was  to  retaliate  for  old  injuries, 
and,  by  taking  the  initiative,  to  prevent  an  attack 
upon  themselves.  The  real  motive  was  said  by 
Gov.  Moore's  opponents  at  home,  to  have  been  the 
acquisition  of  military  reputation  and  private  gain. 

The  plan  of  the  expedition  embraced  a  combined 
land  and  naval  attack  ;  and  for  this  purpose  six 
hundred  provincial  militia  were  embodied,  with  an 
equal  number  of  Indian  allies  ;  a  portion  of  the 
militia,  with  the  Indians,  were  to  go  inland  by  boats 
and  by  land,  under  the  command  of  Col.  Daniel, 


132  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

who  is  spoken  of  as  a  good  officer,  while  the  main 
body  proceeded  with  the  governor  by  sea  in  several 
merchant  schooners  and  ships  which  had  been  im 
pressed  for  the  service. 

The  Spaniards,  who  had  received  intimations  of 
the  contemplated  attack,  placed  themselves  in  the 
best  posture  of  defense  in  their  power,  and  laid  up 
provisions  in  the  castle  to  withstand  a  long  siege. 

The  forces  under  Col.  Daniel  arrived  in  advance 
of  the  naval  fleet  of  the  expedition,  and  immedi 
ately  marched  upon  the  town.  The  inhabitants, 
upon  his  approach,  retired  with  their  most  valuable 
effects  within  the  spacious  walls  of  the  castle,  and 
Col.  Daniel  entered  and  took  possession  of  the  town, 
the  larger  part  of  which,  it  must  be  recollected,  was 
at  some  distance  from  the  castle. 

The  quaint  description  of  these  events,  given  by 
Oldmixon,  is  as  follows  : — 

"  Col.  Rob.  Daniel,  a  very  brave  man,  commanded 
a  party  who  wrere  to  go  up  the  river  in  periagas, 
and  come  upon  Augustine  on  the  land  side,  while 
the  Governour  sailed  thither,  and  attacked  it  by 
sea.  They  both  set  out  in  August,  1702.  Col. 
Daniel,  in  his  way,  took  St.  Johns,  a  small  Spanish 
settlement ;  as  also  St.  Mary's,  another  little  village 
belonging  to  the  Spaniards;  after  which  he  pro 
ceeded  to  Augustino,  came  before  the  town,  entered 


OF    ST.    AUGU3TIXE,    FLORIDA.  133 

and  took  it,  Col.  Moor  not  being  yet  arrived  with 
the  fleet. 

"  The  inhabitants  having  notice  of  the  approach 
of  the  English,  had  packed  up  their  best  effects  and 
retired  with  them  into  the  castle,  which  was  sur 
rounded  by  a  very  deep  and  broad  moat. 

"  They  had  laid  up  provisions  there  for  four 
months,  and  resolved  to  defend  themselves  to  the 
last  extremity.  However,  Col.  Daniel  found  a  con 
siderable  booty  in  the  town.  The  next  day  the 
Governour  came  ashore,  and  his  troops  following 
him,  they  entrenched,  posted  their  guards  in  the 
church,  and  blocked  up  the  castle.  The  English 
held  possession  of  the  town  a  whole  month ;  but 
finding  they  could  do  nothing  for  want  of  mortars  and 
bombs,  they  despatched  away  a  sloop  for  Jamaica ; 
but  the  commander  of  the  sloop,  instead  of  going 
thither,  came  to  Carolina  out  of  fear  of  treachery. 
Finding  others  offered  to  go  in  his  stead,  he  pro 
ceeded  in  the  voyage  himself,  after  he  had  lain  some 
time  at  Charles  town. 

"  The  Governour  all  this  while  lay  before  the  cas 
tle  of  Augustino,  in  expectation  of  the  return  of  the 
sloop,  which  hearing  nothing  of,  he  sent  Col.  Daniel, 
who  was  the  life  of  the  action,  to  Jamaica  on  the 
same  errand. 

This  gentleman,  being  hearty  in  the  design,  pro- 


13J:  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

cured  a  supply  of  bombs,  and  returned  towards 
Augustiuo.  But  in  the  mean-  time  two  ships  ap 
peared  in  the  offing,  which  being  taken  to  be  two 
very  large  men  of  war,  the  Governour  thought  fit  to 
raise  the  siege  and  abandon  his  ships,  with  a  great 
quantity  of  stores,  ammunition,  and  provision,  to  the 
enemy.  Upon  which  the  two  men  of  war  entered 
the  port  of  Augustino,  and  took  the  Governour's 
ships.  Some  say  he  burnt  them  himself.  Certain 
it  is  they  were  lost  to  the  English,  and  that  he 
returned  to  Charles-Town  over  land  300  miles  from 
Augustino.  The  two  men  of  war  that  were  thought 
to  be  so  large,  proved  to  be  two  small  frigates,  one 
of  82,  and  the  other  of  16  guns.* 

"  When  Col.  Daniel  came  back  to  St.  Augustino, 
he  was  chased,  but  got  away;  and  Col.  Moor  re 
treated  with  no  great  honor  homewards.  The  peri- 
agas  lay  at  St.  Johns,  whither  the  Governour  retired 
and  so  to  Charles-Town,  having  lost  but  two  men  in 
the  whole  expedition." 

Arratomakaw,  king  of  the  Yamioseans,  who 
commanded  the  Indians,  retreated  to  the  periagas 
with  the  rest,  and  there  slept  upon  his  oars  with  a 
great  deal  of  bravery  and  unconcern.  The  gover- 

*  There  must  be  an  error,  of  course,  in  this  statement  of  an  82-gun  ship 
entering  St.  Augustine,  as  the  depth  of  water  would  never  admit  a  vessel  of 
over  300  tons:  probably  82  should  read  12  guns.  G.  R.  F. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  135 

nor's  soldiers,  taking  a  false  alarm,  and  thinking  tlie 
Spaniards  were  coming,  did  not  like  this  slow  pace 
of  the  Indian  king  in  his  flight,  and  to  quicken  him 
into  it,  bade  him  make  more  haste.  But  he  replied, 
"  No ;  though  your  governor  leaves  you,  I  will  not 
stir  till  I  have  seen  all  my  men  before  me." 

The  Spanish  accounts  say  that  he  burned  the 
town,  and  this  statement  is  confirmed  by  the  report 
made  on  the  18th  July,  1740,  by  a  committee  of 
the  House  of  Commons  of  the  province  of  South 
Carolina,  in  which  it  is  said,  referring  to  these  trans 
actions,  that  Moore  was  obliged  to  retreat,  but  not 
without  first  burning  the  town.* 

It  seems  that  the  plunder  carried  off  by  Moore's 
troops  was  considerable;  as  his  enemies  charged 
at  the  time  that  he  sent  off  a  sloop-load  to 
Jamaica,  and  in  an  old  colonial  document  of  South 
Carolina,  it  is  represented  "  that  the  late  unfortu 
nate,  ill-contrived,  and  worse  managed  expedition 
against  St.  Augustine,  was  principally  set  on  foot 
by  the  said  late  governor  and  his  adherents ;  and 
that  if  any  person  in'  the  said  late  assembly  under 
took  to  speak  against  it,  and  to  show  how  unfit  and 
unable  we  were  at  that  time  for  such  an  attempt, 
he  was  presently  looked  upon  by  them  as  an  enemy 

«  Carroll's  Hist.  Coll.,  vol.  2,  p.  852. 


136  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

and  traitor  to  his  country,  and  reviled  and  affronted 
in  the  said  assembly ;  although  the  true  design  of 
the  said  expedition  was  no  other  than  catching  and 
making  slaves  of  Indians  for  private  advantage,  and 
impoverishing  the  country.  *  *  *  And  that  the  expe 
dition  was  to  enrich  themselves  will  appear  particu 
larly,  because  whatsoever  booty,  as  rich  silks,  great 
quantity  of  church  plate,  with  a  great  many  other 
costly  church  ornaments  and  utensils  taken  by  our 
soldiers  at  St.  Augustine,  are  now  detained  in  the 
possession  of  the  said  late  governor  and  his  officers, 
contrary  to  an  act  of  assembly  made  for  an  equal 
division  -of  the  same  amongst  the  soldiers."  * 

The  Spanish  accounts  of  this  expedition  of  Moore's 
are  very  meager.  They  designate  him  as  the  gov 
ernor  of  St.  George,  by  which  name  they  called  the 
harbor  of  Charleston ;  and  they  also  speak  of  the 
plunder  of  the  town,  and  the  burning  of  the  greater 
part  of  the  houses.  Don  Joseph  de  Curriga  was  the 
then  governor  of  the  city,  and  had  received  just 
previous  to  the  English  attack,  reinforcements  from 
Havana,  and  had  repaired  and*  strengthened  the  for 
tifications. 

The  retreat  of  the  English  was  celebrated  with 
great  rejoicing  by  the  Spaniards,  who  had  been  for 

*  Rivers'  Hist.  Sketches.  S.  C.,  app.  456. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  137 

three  months  shut  up  within  the  limited  space  of  the 
walls  of  the  castle ;  and  they  gladly  repaired  their 
ruined  homes,  and  made  good  the  ravages  of  the 
English  invasion.  An  English  account  says  that  the 
two  vessels  which  appeared  off  the  bar  and  caused 
Moore's  precipitate  retreat,  contained  but  two  hun 
dred  men,  and  that  had  he  awaited  Colonel  Daniel's 
return  with  the  siege  guns  and  ammunition,  the  castle 
would  have  fallen  into  their  hands. 

In  the  same  year,  the  king  of  Spain,  alarmed  at 
the  dangers  which  menaced  his  possessions  in  Flor 
ida,  gave  greater  attention  to  the  strengthening 
the  defenses  of  St.  Augustine,  and  forwarded  con 
siderable  reinforcements  to  the  garrison,  as  well  as 
additional  supplies  of  munitions. 

The  works  were  directed  to  be  strengthened, 
which  Governor  Curriga  thought  not  as  strong  as 
had  been  represented,  and  that  the  sea  wall  in  the 
process  of  erection,  was  insufficient  for  the  purpose 
for  which  it  was  designed. 

Sixty  years  had  elapsed  since  the  Apalachian 
Indians  had  been  conquered  and  compelled  to  labor 
upon  the  fortifications  of  St.  Augustine ;  their  chiefs 
now  asked  that  they  might  be  relieved  from  further 
compulsory  labor;  and  after  the  usual  number  of 
references  and  reports  and  informations,  through  the 
Spanish  circumlocution  offices,  this  was  graciously 
10 


138  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

granted  in  a  suspensory  form,  until  their  services 
should  be  again  required. 

During  the  year  1712,  a  great  scarcity  of  provi 
sions,  caused  by  the  failure  of  the  usual  supply  ves 
sels,  reduced  the  inhabitants  of  St.  Augustine  to  the 
verge  of  starvation  ;  and,  for  two  or  three  months, 
they  were  obliged  to  live  upon  horses,  cats,  dogs, 
and  other  disgusting  animals.  It  seems  strange, 
that  after  a  settlement  of  nearly  one  hundred  and 
fifty  years,  the  Spaniards  in  Florida  should  still  be 
dependent  upon  the  importation  of  provisions  for 
their  support ;  and  that  anything  like  the  distress 
indicated  should  prevail,  with  the  abundant  resour 
ces  they  had,  from  the  fish,  oysters,  turtle,  and  clarns 
of  the  sea,  and  the  arrow-root  and  cabbage-tree 
palm  of  the  land. 

The  English  settlements  were  now  extending  into 
the  interior  portions  of  South  Carolina;  and  the 
French  had  renewed  their  efforts  at  settlement  and 
colonization  upon  the  rivers  discharging  into  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico.  All  three  nations  were  competitors 
for  the  trade  with  the  Indians,  and  kept  up  an 
intriguing  rivalship  for  this  trade  for  more  than 
a  hundred  years. 

There  seems  to  have  been  at  this  period,  a  policy 
pursued  by  the  Spanish  authorities  in  Florida,  of 
the  most  reprehensible  character.  The  strongest 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  139 

efforts  were  made  to  attach  all  the  Indian  tribes  to 
the  Spanish  interest ;  and  they  were  encouraged  to 
carry  on  a  system  of  plunder  and  annoyance  upon 
the  English  settlements  of  Carolina.  They  particu 
larly  seized  upon  all  the  negroes  they  could  obtain, 
and  carried  them  to  the  governor  at  St.  Augustine ; 
who  invariably  refused  to  surrender  them,  alleging 
that  he  was  acting  under  the  instructions  of  his 
government  in  so  doing. 

In  1704,  Governor  Moore  had  made  a  sweeping 
and  vigorous  excursion  against  the  Indian  towns  in 
Middle  Florida,  all  of  whom  were  in  the  Spanish 
interest;  and  had  broken  up  and  destroyed  the 
towns,  and  missions  attached  to  them.  In  1Y25, 
Colonel  Palmer  determined,  since  no  satisfaction 
could  be  obtained  for  the  incursions  of  the  Spanish 
Indians,  and  the  loss  of  their  slaves,  to  make  a 
descent  upon  them ;  and  with  a  party  of  three  hun 
dred  men  entered  Florida,  with  an  intention  of 
visiting  upon  the  province  all  the  desolation  of 
retributive  warfare. 

He  went  up  to  the  very  gates  of  St.  Augustine, 
and  compelled  the  inhabitants  to  seek  protection 
within  the  castle.  In  his  course  he  swept  every 
thing  before  him,  destroying  every  house,  field, 
and  improvement  within  his  reach  ;  carrying  off 
the  live-stock,  and  every  thing  else  of  value.  The 


140  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

Spanish  Indians  who  fell  within  his  power,  were 
slain  in  large  numbers,  and  many  were  taken 
prisoners.  Outside  of  the  walls  of  St.  Augustine 
nothing  was  left  undestroyed ;  and  the  Spanish 
authorities  received  a  memorable  lesson  in  the  law 
of  retribution. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

SIEGE  OF  ST.  AUGUSTINE,  BY  OGLETHORPE.— 1732— 1740. 

DIFFICULTIES  existed  for  many  years  subsequently, 
between  the  Spanish  and  English  settlements.  In 
IT 32,  Oglethorpe  planted  his  colony  in  Georgia,  and 
extended  his  settlements  along  the  coast  towards 
Florida,  claiming  and  occupying  the  country  up  to 
the  margin  of  the  St.  Johns,  and  established  a  post 
at  St.  George  Island.  This  was  deemed  an  invasion 
of  the  territory  of  Spain ;  and  the  post  was  attacked 
unfairly,  as  the  English  say,  and  some  of  their  men 
murdered.  Oglethorpe,  upon  this,  acting  under  the 
instructions  of  the  home  government,  commenced 
hostilities,  by  arranging  a  joint  attack,  of  the  forces 
of  South  Carolina  and  Georgia,  with  a  view  to  the 
entire  conquest  of  Florida. 

The  instructions  of  the  king  of  England  to  Ogle 
thorpe,  were,  that  he  should  make  a  naval  and  land 
attack  upon  St.  Augustine ;  "  and  if  it  shall  please 
God  to  give  you  success,  you  are  either  to  demolish 
the  fort  and  bastions,  or  put  a  garrison  in  it,  in  case 


14:2  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

you  shall  have  men  enough  for  that  purpose ;  which 
last,  it  is  thought,  will  be  the  best  way  to  prevent 
the  Spaniards  from  endeavoring  to  retake  and  settle 
the  said  place  again,  at  any  time  hereafter."  * 

Don  Manuel  Monteano  was  then  governor  of  Flor 
ida,  and  in  command  of  the  garrison.  The  city  and 
castle  were  previously  in  a  poor  condition  to  with 
stand  an  attack  from  a  well-prepared  foe ;  and  on 
the  llth  November,  1737,  Governor  Monteano 
writes  to  the  governor-general  of  Cuba,  that  "  the 
fort  of  this  place  is  its  only  defense ;  it  has  no  case 
mates  for  the  shelter  of  the  men,  nor  the  necessary 
elevation  to  the  counter-scarp,  nor  covert  ways,  nor 
ravelins  to  the  curtains,  nor  other  exterior  works 
that  could  give  time  for  a  long  defense ;  but  it  is 
thus  naked  outside,  as  it  is  without  soul  within,  for 
there  are  no  cannon  that  could  be  fired  twenty-four 
hours,  and  though  there  were,  artillery-men  to  man 
age  them  are  wanting." 

Under  the  superintendence  of  an  able  officer  of 
engineers,  Don  Antonio  de  Arredando,  the  works 
were  put  in  order ;  the  ramparts  were  heightened 
and  casemated ;  a  covered  way  was  made,  by  plant 
ing  and  embanking  four  thousand  stakes;  bomb 
proof  vaults  were  constructed,  and  entrenchments 

*  State  Papers  of  Georgia.     Ga.  Hist.  Soc. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  1-43 

thrown  up  around  the  town,  protected  by  ten  salient 
angles,  many  of  which  are  still  visible.  The  garri 
son  of  the  town  was  about  seven  hundred  and  forty 
soldiers,  according  to  Governor  Monteano's  return 
of  troops.  On  the  25th  March,  1740,  the  total  pop 
ulation  of  St.  Augustine,  of  all  classes,  was  two  thou 
sand  one  hundred  and  forty-three. 

Previous  to  his  attack  upon  the  place,  General 
Oglethorpe  obtained  the  following  information  from 
prisoners  whom  he  took  at  the  outposts.  He  says, 
"They  agree  that  there  are  fifty  pieces  of  cannon  in 
the  castle  at  St.  Augustine,  several  of  which  are 
of  brass,  from  twelve  to  forty-eight  pounds.  It  has 
four  bastions.  The  walls  are  of  stone,  and  casema- 
ted.  The  internal  square  is  sixty  yards.  The  ditch 
is  forty  feet  wide,  and  twelve  feet  deep,  six  of  which 
is  sometimes  filled  with  water.  The  counterscarp  is 
faced  with  stone.  They  have  lately  made  a  covered 
way.  The  town  is  fortified  with  an  entrenchment, 
salient  angles,  and  redoubts,  which  inclose  about  half 
a  mile  in  length,  and  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  width. 
The  inhabitants  and  garrison,  men,  women,  and  chil 
dren,  amount  to  above  two  thousand  five  hundred. 
For  the  garrison,  the  king  pays  eight  companies, 
sent  from  Spain  two  years  since  for  the  invasion 
of  Georgia;  upon  establishment  fifty-three  men 
each,  three  companies  of  foot  and  one  of  artillery, 


14:4:  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

of  the  old  garrison,  and  one  troop  of  horse  one  hun 
dred  each  upon  establishment ;  of  these,  one  hundred 
are  at  St.  Marks,  ten  days'  march  from  St.  Augus 
tine;  upon  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  one  hundred  are 
disposed  in  several  small  forts." 

Of  these  out-posts,  there  were  two,  one  on  each  side 
of  the  river  St.  Johns — at  Picolata,  and  immediately 
opposite — and  at  Diego.  The  purpose  of  the  forts  at 
Picolata  was  to  guard  the  passage  of  the  river,  and 
to  keep  open  the  communication  with  St.  Marks 
and  Pensacola ;  and  when  threatened  with  the  inva 
sion  of  Oglethorpe,  messengers  were  dispatched  to 
the  governor  of  Pensacola  for  aid,  and  also  to  Mex 
ico  by  the  same  route.  The  fort  at  Diego  was  but 
a  small  work,  erected  by  Don  Diego  de  Spinosa, 
upon  his  own  estate ;  and  the  remains  of  it,  with 
one  or  two  cannon,  are  still  visible.  Fort  Moosa 
was  an  out-post  at  the  place  now  known  by  that 
name,  on  the  North  River,  about  two  miles  north 
of  St.  Augustine.  A  fortified  line,  a  considerable 
portion  of  which  may  be  now  traced,  extended 
across  from  the  stoccades  on  the  St.  Sebastian,  to 
Fort  Moosa;  a  communication  by  a  tide  creek 
existed  through  the  marshes,  between  the  castle  at 
St.  Augustine  and  Fort  Moosa. 

Oglethorpe  first  attacked  the  two  forts  at  Picolata, 
one  of  which,  called  Fort  Pappa,  or  St.  Francis  de 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  U5 

Pappa,  was  a  place  of  some  strength.  Its  remains 
still  exist,  about  one-fourth  of  a  mile  north  of  the 
termination  of  the  Bellamy  Road,  its  earthworks 
being  still  strongly  marked. 

After  a  slight  resistance,  both  forts  fell  into  his 
hands,  much  to  the  annoyance  of  Governor  Mon- 
teano.  Oglethorpe  speaks  of  Fort  Francis  as  being 
of  much  importance,  "as  commanding  the  passes 
from  St.  Augustine  to  Mexico,  and  into  the  country 
of  the  Creek  Indians,  and  also  being  upon  the  ferry, 
where  the  troops  which  come  from  St.  Augustine 
must  pass."  He  found  in  it,  one  mortar  piece,  two 
carriages,  three  small  guns,  ammunition,  one  hun 
dred  and  fifty  shells,  and  fifty  glass  bottles  full  of 
gunpowder,  with  fuses — a  somewhat  novel  missile 
of  war. 

The  English  general's  plan  of  operation  was,  that 
the  crews  and  troops  upon  the  vessels  should  land, 
and  throw  up  batteries  upon  Anastasia  Island, 
from  thence  bombarding  the  town;  while  he  him 
self,  designed  to  lead  the  attack  on  the  land  side. 
Having  arrived  in  position,  he  gave  the  signal  of 
attack  to  the  fleet,  by  sending  up  a  rocket ;  but  no 
response  came  from  the  vessels,  and  he  had  the  mor 
tification  of  being  obliged  to  withdraw  his  troops. 
The  troops  were  unable  to  effect  a  landing  from  the 
vessels,  in  consequence  of  a  number  of  armed  Span- 


U6  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

isli  galleys  having  been  drawn  up  inside  the  bar ; 
so  that  no  landing  could  be  made  except  under  a 
severe  fire,  while  the  galleys  were  protected  from  an 
attack  by  the  ships,  in  consequence  of  the  shoal 
water. 

He  then  prepared  to  reduce  the  town  by  a  regu 
lar  siege,  with  a  strict  blockade  by  sea.  He  hoped, 
by  driving  the  inhabitants  into  the  castle,  so  to 
encumber  the  governor  with  useless  mouths,  as  to 
reduce  him  to  the  necessity  of  a  surrender  to  avoid 
starvation.  The  town  was  placed  under  the  range 
of  his  heavy  artillery  and  mortars,  and  soon  became 
untenable,  forcing  the  citizens  generally  to  seek  the 
shelter  of  the  fort. 

Col.  Vanderduysen  was  posted  at  Point  Quartel ; 
and  others  of  the  troops  upon  Anastasia  Island,  and 
the  north  beach.  Three  batteries  were  erected : 
one  on  Anastasia  Island,  called  the  Poza,  which  con 
sisted  of  four  eighteen-pounders  and  one  nine- 
pounder  ;  one  on  the  point  of  the  wood  of  the  island, 
mounting  two  eighteen-pounders.  The  remains  of 
the  Poza  battery  are  still  to  be  seen,  almost  as  dis 
tinctly  marked  as  on  the  day  of  its  erection.  Four 
mortars  and  forty  cohorns  were  employed  in  the 
siege. 

The  siege  began  on  the  12th  June  ;  and  on  the 
25th  June  a  night  sortie  was  made  from  the  castle 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  147 

against  a  portion  of  the  troops  under  command  of 
Col.  Palmer,  who  were  encamped  at  Fort  Moosa, 
including  a  company  of  Scotch  Highlanders,  number 
ing  eighty-five  men,  under  their  chief,  Capt.  Mcln- 
tosh,  all  equipped  in  Highland  dress.  This  attack  was 
entirely  successful,  and  the  English  sustained  a  severe 
loss,  their  colonel  being  killed,  with  twenty  Highland 
ers,  twenty-seven  soldiers,  and  a  number  of  Indians. 

This  affair  at  Fort  Moosa  has  generally  been  con 
sidered  as  a  surprise,  and  its  disastrous  results  as  the 
consequence  of  carelessness  and  disobedience  of  the 
orders  of  Oglethorpe.  Captain  Mclntosh,  the  leader 
of  the  Highlanders,  was  taken  prisoner,  and  finally 
transferred  to  Spain.  From  his  prison  at  St.  Sebas 
tian,  under  date  of  20th  June,  1741,  he  gives  the 
following  account  of  the  matter  : — 

"  I  listed  seventy  men,  all  in  Highland  dress,  and 
marched  to  the  sie^e,  and  was  ordered  to  scout  nigh 
St.  Augustine  and  molest  the  enemy,  while  the  gen 
eral  and  the  rest  of  his  little  army  went  to  an  island 
where  we  could  have  no  succor  of  them.  I  punctu 
ally  obeyed  my  orders,  until'  seven  hundred  Span 
iards  sallied  out  from  the  garrison,  an  hour  before 
daylight.  They  did  not  surprise  us,  for  we  were  all 
under  arms,  ready  to  receive  them,  which  we  did 
briskly,  keeping  a  constant  firing  for  a  quarter  of  an 
hour,  when  they  prest  on  with  numbers ;  was 


148  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

obliged  to  take  our  swords  until  the  most  of  us  was 
shot  and  cut  to  pieces.  You  are  to  observe  we  bad 
but  eighty  men  ;  and  the  engagement  was  in  view  of 
the  rest  of  our  army,  but  they  could  not  come  to  our 
assistance,  by  being  in  the  foresaid  island,  under  the 
enemy's  guns.  They  had  twenty  prisoners,  a  few 
got  off,  the  rest  killed ;  as  we  were  well  informed  by 
some  of  themselves,  they  had  three  hundred  killed 
on  the  spot,*  besides  several  wounded.  We  were 
all  stripped  naked  of  clothes,  brought  to  St.  Augus 
tine,  where  we  remained  three  months  in  close  con- 
finement.f 

This  officer  was  Capt.  John  Mclntosh ;  and  his  son, 
Brig.  Gen.  Mclntosh,  then  a  youth  of  fourteen,  was 
present  in  the  engagement,  and  escaped  without  in 
jury.  The  family  of  the  Mclntoshes  have  always 
been  conspicuous  in  the  history  of  Georgia. 

The  large  number  of  persons  collected  within  the 
walls  of  the  castle,  and  under  the  protection  of  its 
battlements,  soon  gave  rise  to  serious  apprehensions 
on  the  part  of  the  besieged,  of  being  reduced  by 
starvation  to  the  necessity  of  a  speedy  surrender. 


*  This  statement  is  unsupported  by  either  Spanish  or  English  author 
ity.  The  writer  of  the  letter,  through  want  of  familiarity  with  their  lan 
guage,  misunderstood  his  informants,  in  all  probability,  as  to  the  extent 
of  their  loss. 

f  MSS.  in  Geo.  Hist,  Soc.  Library. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA. 

The  batteries  of  Oglethorpe  were  planted  at  so 
great  a  distance  that  he  could  produce  but  little 
effect  by  his  shot  or  shells  upon  the  castle,  although 
he  rendered  the  city  itself  untenable.  The  heat  of 
the  season  and  the  exposure,  to  which  the  Provincial 
militia  were  unaccustomed,  soon  produced  considera 
ble  sickness  and  discouragement  in  the  invading 
force,  and  affected  Oglethorpe  himself. 

The  Spanish  governor  sent  most  urgent  messages 
to  the  governor  of  the  island  of  Cuba,  which  were 
transmitted  by  runners  along  the  coast,  and  thence 
by  small  vessels  across  to  Havana.  In  one  of  these 
letters  he  says,  "  My  greatest  anxiety  is  for  provis 
ions  ;  and  if  they  do  not  come,  there  is  no  doubt  of 
our  dying  by  the  hands  of  hunger."  In  another,  he 
says,  "  I  assure  your  Lordship,  that  it  is  impossible 
to  express  the  confusion  of  the  place ;  for  we  have  no 
protection  except  the  fort,  and  all  the  rest  is  open 
field.  The  families  have  abandoned  their  houses, 
and  come  to  put  themselves  under  the  guns,  which 
is  pitiable ;  though  nothing  gives  me  anxiety  but  the 
want  of  provisions  ;  and  if  your  Lordship  for  want 
competent  force  cannot  send  relief,  we  must  all 
perish."* 

With  the  exception  of  the  Fort  Moosa  affair,  the 

*  Monteano,  MSS.,  Archives  St.  Augustine. 


150  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

hostilities  were  confined  to  the  exchange  of  shots 
between  the  castle  and  the  batteries.  Considerable 
discrepancy  exists  between  the  Spanish  and  English 
accounts,  as  to  the  period  when  the  garrison  was 
relieved :  it  was  the  comnmni cation  of  the  fact  of 
relief  having  been  received,  which  formed  the  osten 
sible  ground  of  abandoning  the  siege  by  Oglethorpe ; 
but  the  Spanish  governor  asserts,  that  these  provi 
sion  vessels  did  not  arrive  until  the  siege  was  raised. 
The  real  fact,  I  am  inclined  to  think,  is  that  the  pro 
vision  vessels  arrived  at  Mosquito,  a  harbor  sixty 
miles  below,  where  they  were  to  await  orders  from 
Gov.  Monteano,  as  to  the  mode  of  getting  dis 
charged,*  and  that  the  information  of  their  arrival, 
being  known  at  St.  Augustine,  was  communicated  to 
the  English,  and  thus  induced  their  raising  the 
siege ;  in  fact,  the  hope  of  starving  out  the  garrison 
was  the  only  hope  left  to  Oglethorpe  ;  his  strength 
was  insufficient  for  an  assault,  and  his  means  inade 
quate  to  reduce  the  castle,  which  was  well  manned 
and  well  provided  with  means  of  defense. 

It  was  in  truth  a  hopeless  task,  under  the  circum 
stances,  for  Oglethorpe  to  persevere ;  and  it  is  no 
impeachment  of  his  courage  or  his  generalship,  that  he 
was  unable  to  take  a  fortress  of  really  very  respecta 
ble  strength. 

*  Monteano,  MS.  Letter  of,  28th  July,  1740. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  151 

The  siege  continued  from  the  13th  June,  to  the 
20th  July,  a  period  of  thirty-eight  days.  The  bom 
bardment  was  kept  up  twenty  days,  but  owing  to  the 
lightness  of  the  guns  and  the  long  range,  but  little 
effect  was  produced  on  the  strong  walls  of  the  castle. 
Its  spongy,  infrangible  walls  received  the  balls  from 
the  batteries  like  a  cotton  bale,  or  sand  battery, 
almost  without  making  an  impression ;  this  may  be 
seen  on  examination,  since  the  marks  remain  to  this 
day,  as  they  were  left  at  the  end  of  the  siege,  one 
hundred  and  seventeen  years  ago. 

The  prosecution  of  the  siege  having  become 
impracticable,  preparations  were  made  for  retiring ; 
and  Oglethorpe,  as  a  pardonable  and  characteristic 
protest  against  the  assumption  of  his  acting  from  any 
coercion,  with  drums  beating  and  banners  displayed 
crossed  over  to  the  main  land,  and  marched  in  full 
view  of  the  castle,  to  his  encampment  three  miles 
distant,  situated  probably  at  the  point  now  known 
as  Pass  Navarro. 

Great  credit  and  respect  have  been  deservedly 
awarded  to  Governor  Monteano,  for  the  courage, 
skill,  and  perseverance  with  which  he  sustained  the 
siege. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  English  general,  had  in 
a  few  months,  an  ample  opportunity  of  showing  to 
his  opponent,  that  his  skill  in  defending  his  own 
territory  under  the  most  disadvantageous  circuin- 


152  THE    HISTORY    AXD    ANTIQUITIES 

stances,  was  equal  to  that  of  the  accomplished  Mon- 
teano  himself.  The  defense  of  Frederica,  and  signal 
defeat  of  the  Spanish  forces  at  Fort  Simons,  will  ever 
challenge  for  Oglethorpe  the  highest  credit  for  the 
most  sterling  qualities  of  a  good  general  and  a  great 
man. 

Two  years  subsequently,  Oglethorpe  again  ad 
vanced  into  Florida,  appeared  before  the  gates  of  St. 
Augustine,  and  endeavored  to  induce  the  garrison 
to  march  out  to  meet  him ;  but  they  kept  within 
their  walls,  and  Oglethorpe  in  one  of  his  dispatches 
says,  in  the  irritation  caused  by  their  prudence,  "  that 
they  were  so  meek  there  was  no  provoking  them." 
As  in  this  incursion  he  had  no  object  in  view  but  a 
devastation  of  the  country,  and  harrassing  the 
enemy,  he  shortly  withdrew  his  forces. 

A  committee  of  the  South  Carolina  House  of  Com 
mons,  in  a  report  upon  the  Oglethorpe  expedition, 
thus  speaks  of  St.  Augustine,  evidently  smarting 
under  the  disappointment  of  their  recent  defeat. 
"July  1st,  1741." 

"  St.  Augustine,  in  the  possession  of  the  crown  of 
Spain,  is  well  known  to  be  situated  but  little  dis 
tance  from  hence,  in  latitude  thirty  degrees,  in  Flor 
ida,  the  next  territory  to  us.  It  is  maintained  by 
his  Catholic  Majesty,  partly  to  preserve  his  claim  to 
Florida,  and  partly  that  it  may  be  of  service  to  the 
plate-fleets  when  corning  through  the  gulf,  by  show- 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  153 

ing  lights  to  them   along   the  coast,  and  by  being 
ready  to   give   assistance   when   any  of  them   are 
cast  away   thereabout.     The  castle,  by  the  largest 
account,  doth  not   cover   more   than  one   acre   of 
ground,  but  is  allowed  on  all  hands  to  be  a  place  of 
great  strength,  and   hath  been   usually  garrisoned 
with  about  three  or  four  hundred  men  of  the  king's 
regular  troops.     The  town   is  not  very  large,  and 
but  indifferently  fortified.     The  inhabitants,  many 
of  which  are  mulattoes  of  savage  dispositions,  are  all 
in  the  king's  pay ;  also  being  registered  from  their 
birth,  and  a  severe  penalty  laid  on  any  master  of  a 
vessel  that  shall  attempt  to  carry  any  of  them  off. 
These  are  formed  into  a  militia,  and  have  been  gen 
erally  computed  to  be  near  about  the  same  number 
as  the  regular  troops.     Thus  relying  wholly  on  the 
king's  pay  for  their  subsistence,  their  thoughts  never 
turned  to  trade  or  even  agriculture,  but  depending 
on  foreign  supplies  for  the  most  common  necessaries 
of  life,  they  spent  their  time  in  universal,  perpetual 
idleness.     From  such  a  state,  mischievous  inclinations 
naturally  sprung  up  in  such  a  people ;  and  having 
leisure  and  opportunity,  ever  since  they  had  a  neigh 
bor  the  fruits  of  whose  industry  excited  their  desires 
and  envy,  they  have  not  failed  to  carry  those  incli 
nations  into  action  as  often  as  they  could,  without 
the  least  regard  to  peace  or  war  subsisting  between 
the  two  crowns  of  Great  Britain  and  Spain,  or  to 
11 


154  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

stipulations  agreed  upon  between  the  two  govern 
ments."* 

Among  the  principal  grievances  set  forth  in  this 
report,  was  the  carrying  off  and  enticing  and  harbor 
ing  their  slaves,  of  which  a  number  of  instances  are 
enumerated ;  and  they  attributed  the  negro  insurrec 
tion  which  occurred  in  South  Carolina,  in  1739,  to 
the  connivance  and  agency  of  the  Spanish  authorities 
at  St.  Augustine  ;  and  they  proceed  in  a  climax  of 
indignation  to  hurl  their  denunciation  at  the  sup 
posed  authors  of  their  misfortunes,  in  the  following 
terms :  "  With  indignation  we  looked  at  St.  Augus 
tine  (like  another  Sallee !)  That  den  of  thieves 
and  ruffians !  receptacle  of  debtors,  servants  and 
slaves  !  bane  of  industry  and  society !  and  revolved 
in  our  minds  all  the  injuries  this  province  had  received 
from  thence,  ever  since  its  first  settlement.  That 
they  had  from  first  to  last,  in  times  of  profoundest 
peace,  both  publickly  and  privately,  by  themselves, 
Indians,  and  Negroes,  in  every  shape  molested  us,  not 
without  some  instances  of  uncommon  cruelty."f 

It  is  very  certain  there  was  on  each  side,  enough 
supposed  causes  of  provocation  to  induce  a  far  from 
amiable  state  of  feeling  between  these  neighboring 
colonies. 

*  Report  upon  Expedition  to  St.  Augustine.  Carroll's  Coll.  2d  vol., 
p.  854. 

f  Carroll's  Hist.  Coll.  S.  C.,  p.  359. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  155 


CHAPTER   XV. 

COMPLETION  OF  THE  CASTLE— DESCRIPTIONS  OF  ST.  AUGUS 
TINE  A  CENTURY  AGO—ENGLISH  OCCUPATION  OF  FLORIDA. 

1755—1763—1783. 

DON  Alonzo  Fernandez  de  Herrera  was  appointed 
governor  of  Florida  in  1755,  and  completed  the 
exterior  works  and  finish  of  the  fort.  It  is  this  gov 
ernor  who  erected  the  tablet  over  its  main  entrance, 
with  the  Spanish  coat  of  arms  sculptured  in  alto 
relievo,  with  the  following  inscription  beneath  :— 

REYNANDO  EN  ESPANA  EL  SEN* 

DON  FERNANDO   SEXTO  Y  SIENDO 

GOVOE  Y  CAPN  DE  ESA  CD  SAN  AUG*  DE 

LA  FLORIDA  Y  SUS   PROVA  EL  MARISCAL 

DE  CAMPO  DNALONZO  FERNDO  HEREDA 

ASI  CONCLUIO  ESTE  CASTILLO  EL  AN 

OD  1756  DIRI^ENDO  LAS  OBRAS  EL 

CAP.  INGNRO  DN  PEDRO  DE  BROZAS 

Y  GARAY. 

DON  FERDINAND  THE  SIXTH,  BEING  KING  OF  SPAIN, 
AND  THE  FIELD  MARSHAL,  DON  ALONZO  FER- 


156  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

NANDO  HEREDA,  BEING  GOVERNOR  AND  CAPTAIN 
GENERAL  OF  THIS  PLACE,  ST.  AUGUSTINE,  OF  FLO 
RIDA,  AND  ITS  PROVINCE.  THIS  FORT  WAS  FINISHED 

IN  THE  YEAR  1^56.  TlIE  WORKS  WERE  DIRECTED 
BY  THE  CAPTAIN  ENGINEER,  DON  PEDRO  DE  BRAZOS 
Y  GARAY. 

I  am  not  sure  but  that  the  boastful  governor 
might  with  equal  propriety  and  truth,  have  put 
a  similar  inscription  at  the  city  gate,  claiming  the 
town  also  as  a  finished  city. 

The  first  fort  erected  was  called  San  Juan  de 
Pinos,  and  probably  the  same  name  attached  to  the 
present  fort  at  the  commencement  of  its  erection  ; 
when  it  acquired  the  name  of  St.  Mark,  I  have  not 
discovered.  The  Apalachian  Indians  were  employed 
upon  it  for  more  than  sixty  years,  and  to  their  efforts 
are  probably  due  the  evidences  of  immense  labor  in 
the  construction  of  the  ditch,  the  ramparts  and  glacis, 
and  the  approaches ;  while  the  huge  mass  of  stone 
contained  in  its  solid  walls,  must  have  required  the 
labor  of  hundreds  of  persons  for  many  long  years, 
in  procuring  and  cutting  the  stone  in  the  quarries  on 
the  island,  transporting  it  to  the  water,  and  across 
the  bay,  and  fashioning  and  raising  them  to  their 
places.  Besides  the  Indians  employed,  some  labor 
was  constantly  bestowed  by  the  garrison ;  and  for 
a  considerable  period,  convicts  were  brought  hither 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  157 

from  Mexico  to  carry  on  the  public  works.  During 
the  works  of  extension  and  repair  effected  by  Mon- 
teano,  previous  to  the  siege  by  Oglethorpe,  he  em 
ployed  upon  it  one  hundred  and  forty  of  these 
Mexican  convicts.  The  southwestern  bastion  is  said 
to  have  been  completed  by  Monteano.  The  bastions 
bore  the  names  respectively  of  St.  Paul,  St.  Peter, 
St.  James,  &c. 

The  whole  work  remains  now  as  it  was  in  1756, 
with  the  exception  of  the  water  battery,  which  was 
reconstructed  by  the  government  of  the  United 
States  in  1842-3.  The  complement  of  its  guns  is 
one  hundred,  and  its  full  garrison  establishment 
requires  one  thousand  men.  It  is  built  upon  the 
plan  of  Vauban,  and  is  considered  by  military  men 
as  a  very  creditable  work  ;  its  strength  and  efficiency 
have  been  well  tested  in  the  old  times ;  for  it  has 
never  been  taken,  although  twice  besieged,  and 
several  times  attacked.  Its  frowning  battlements 
and  sepulchral  vaults,  will  long  stand  after  we  and 
those  of  our  day  shall  be  numbered  with  that  long 
past,  of  which  it  is  itself  a  memorial ;  of  its  legends 
connected  with  the  dark  chambers  and  prison  vaults, 
the  chains,  the  instruments  of  torture,  the  skeletons 
walled  in,  its  closed  and  hidden  recesses — of  Coa- 
couchee's  escape,  and  many  another  tale,  there  is  much 
to  say  ;  but  it  is,  better  said  within  its  grim  walls, 


158  THE    HISTORY    AXD    ANTIQUITIES 

where  the  eye  and  the  imagination  can  go  together, 
in  weaving  a  web  of  mystery  and  awe  over  its  sad 
associations,  to  the  music  of  the  grating  bolt,  the 
echoing  tread,  and  the  clanking  chain. 

Of  the  city  itself,  we  have  the  following  descrip 
tion  in  1754  : — 

"  It  is  built  on  a  little  bay,  at  the  foot  of  a  hill 
shaded  by  trees,  and  forms  an  oblong  square,  divided 
into  four  streets,  and  has  two  full  streets,  which  cut 
each  other  at  right  angles.  The  houses  are  well 
built ,  and  regular.  They  have  only  one  church, 
which  is  called  after  the  city.  St.  John's  Fort, 
standing  about  a  mile  north  of  it,  is  a  strong,  irreg 
ular  fortification,  well  mounted  with  cannon,  and 
capable  of  making  a  long  defense." 

I  am  inclined  to  think  that  the  mile  between  the 
fort  and  the  city,  and  the  Mil  at  the  foot  of  which, 
he  says,  the  city  was  built,  existed  only  in  the  focus 
of  the  writer's  spectacles. 

The  Provinces  of  Florida  were  ceded  by  treaty 
to  England  in  the  year  1763,  and  the  Spanish  inhab 
itants  very  generally  left  the  country,  which  had 
then  been  under  Spanish  rule  for  near  two  hundred 
years ;  and  certainly  in  no  portion  of  this  country, 
had  less  progress  been  made.  Beyond  the  walls 
occupied  by  its  garrison,  little  had  been  attempted 
or  accomplished  in  these  two  hundred  years.  This 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  159 

was  in  part,  perhaps,  attributable  to  the  circumstan 
ces  of  the  country, — the  frequent  hostility  of  the 
Indians,  and  the  want  of  that  mutual  support  given 
by  neighborhoods,  which  in  Florida  are  less  practi 
cable  than  elsewhere ;  but  it  was  still  more  owing 
to  the  character  of  the  Spanish  inhabitants,  who 
were  more  soldiers  than  civilians,  and  more  towns 
men  than  agriculturists ;  at  all  events,  at  the  cession 
of  Florida  to  Great  Britain,  the  number  of  inhab 
itants  was  not  over  five  thousand. 

Of  the  period  of  the  English  occupation  of  Flor 
ida,  we  have  very  full  accounts.  It  was  a  primary 
object  with  the  British  government,  to  colonize  and 
settle  it;  and  inducements  to  emigrants  were 
strongly  put  forth,  in  various  publications.  The  work 
of  Roberts  was  the  first  of  these,  and  was  followed  in 
a  few  years  by  those  of  Bartrarn,  Stork,  and  Romans. 
The  works  of  both  Roberts  and  Stork,  contain 
plans  and  minute  descriptions  of  St.  Augustine.  The 
plan  of  the  town  in  Stork,  represents  every  build 
ing,  lot,  garden,  and  flower-bed  in  the  place,  and 
gives  a  very  accurate  view  of  its  general  appearance. 

The  descriptions  vary  somewhat.  Roberts,  who 
published  his  work  the  year  of  the  cession,  1763, 
shows  in  connection  with  his  plan  of  the  town,  an 
Indian  village  on  the  point  south  of  the  city,  at  the 
powder-house,  and  another  just  north  of  the  city. 


160  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

The  one  to  the  north  has  a  church.  A  negro  fort  is 
shown  about  a  mile  to  the  northward.  Oglethorpe's 
landing  place  is  shown  on  Anastasia  Island,  and  a 
small  fort  on  the  main  land  south  of  the  city.  The 
depth  of  water  on  the  bar  is  marked  as  being  at  low 
water,  eight  feet. 

Roberts  describes  the  city  as  "  running  along  the 
shore  at  the  foot  of  a  pleasant  hill,  adorned  with 
trees;  its  form  is  oblong,  divided  by  four  regular 
streets,  crossing  each  other  at  right  angles ;  down 
by  the  sea  side,  about  three-fourths  of  a  mile  south 
of  the  town,  standeth  the  church,  and  a  monastery 
of  St.  Augustine.  The  best  built  part  of  the  town  is 
on  the  north  side,  leading  to  the  castle,  which  is  called 
St.  John's  Fort.  It  is  a  square  building  of  soft  stone, 
fortified  with  whole  bastions,  having  a  rampart  of 
twenty  feet  high,  with  a  parapet  nine  feet  high,  and 
it  is  casemated.  The  town  is  fortified  with  bastions, 
and  with  cannon.  On  the  north  and  south,  without 
the  walls  of  the  city,  are  the  Indian  towns." 

The  next  plan  we  have,  is  in  the  work  by  Dr. 
Stork,  the  third  edition  of  which  was  published  in 
1769.  He  gives  a  beautiful  plan  of  the  place.  Shows 
the  fort  as  it  now  exists,  with  its  various  outworks ; 
three  churches  are  designated,  one  on  the  public 
square  at  its  southwest  corner ;  another  on  St.  George 
street,  on  the  lot  on  the  west  side,  south  of  Green 


4°     4° 


, 

•^  C 

"J 


ms  over  the 


OF    ST     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  '161 

lane,  and  a  Dutch  church  near  where  the  Eonian 
Catholic  cemetery  now  exists.  From  the  size  of  the 
plan,  it  does  not  embrace  the  Indian  village.  The 
present  United  States  Court-house  was  the  gov 
ernor's  official  residence,  and  is  represented  as 
having  attached  to  it  a  beautiful  garden.  The 
Franciscan  house  or  convent,  is  shown  where  the 
barracks  are  now,  but  different  in  the  form  of  the 
buildings.  With  the  exception  of  the  disappearance 
of  a  part  of  one  street  then  existing,  there  appears 
very  little  change  from  the  present  plan  of  the  town 
and  buildings. 

He  describes  the  fort  as  being  finished  "  according 
to  the  modern  taste  of  military  architecture,*'  and  as 
making  a  very  handsome  appearance,  and  "that  it 
might  justly  be  deemed  the  prettiest  fort  in  the 
king's  dominion."  He  omits  the  pleasant  hill  from 
his  description,  and  says  "  the  town  is  situated  near 
the  glacis  of  the  fort ;  the  streets  are  regularly  laid 
out,  and  built  narrow  for  the  purposes  of  shade.  It  is 
above  half  a  mile  in  length,  regularly  fortified  with 
bastions,  half-bastions,  and  a  ditch  ;  that  it  had  also 
several  rows  of  the  Spanish  bayonet  along  the 
ditch,  which  formed  so  close  a  chevaux  de  frize, 
with  their  pointed  leaves,  as  to  be  impenetrable  ;  the 
southern  bastions  were  built  of  stone.  In  the 
middle  of  the  town  is  a  spacious  square,  called  the 


162  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

parade,  open  towards  the  harbor  ;  at  the  bottom  of 
the  square  is  the  governor's  house,  the  apartments 
of  which  are  spacious  and  suitable ;  suited  to  the 
climate,  with  high  windows,  a  balcony  in  front,  and 
galleries  on  both  sides ;  to  the  back  of  the  house  is 
joined  a  tower,  called  in  America  a  look-out,  from 
which  there  is  an  extensive  prospect  towards  the  sea, 
as  well  as  inland.  There  are  two  churches  within 
the  walls  of  the  town,  the  parish  church,  a  plain 
building,  and  another  belonging  to  the  convent  of 
Franciscan  Friars,  which  is  converted  into  barracks 
for  the  garrison.  The  houses  are  built  of  free-stone, 
commonly  two  stories  high,  two  rooms  upon  a  floor, 
with  large  windows  and  balconies  ;  before  the  entry 
of  most  of  the  houses,  runs  a  portico  of  stone  arches. 
The  roofs  are  commonly  flat.  The  Spaniards  con 
sulted  convenience  more  than  taste  in  their  build 
ings.  The  number  of  houses  within  the  town  and 
lines,  when  the  Spaniards  left  it,  was  about  nine 
hundred ;  many  of  them,  especially  in  the  suburbs, 
being  built  of  wood  are  now  gone  to  decay.  The 
inhabitants  were  of  all  colors,  whites,  negroes,  inulat- 
toes,  Indians,  &c.  At  the  evacuation  of  St.  Augus 
tine,  the  population  was  five  thousand  seven  hundred, 
including  the  garrison  of  two  thousand  five  hundred 
men.  Half  a  mile  from  the  town  to  the  west,  is  a 
line  with  a  broad  ditch  and  bastions,  running  from 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  163 

the  St.  Sebastian  creek  to  St.  Marks  river.  A  mile 
further  is  another  fortified  line  with  some  redoubts, 
forming  a  second  communication  between  a  stoccata 
fort  upon  St.  Sebastian  river  and  Forfc  Moosa,  upon 
St.  Marks  river. 

"  Within  the  first  line  near  the  town,  was  a  small 
settlement  of  Germans,  who  had  a  church  of  their 
own.  Upon  the  St.  Marks  river,  within  the  second 
line,  was  also  an  Indian  town,  with  a  church  built 
of  freestone  ;  what  is  very  remarkable,  it  is  in  good 
taste,  though  built  by  the  Indians." 

The  two  lines  of  defense  here  spoken  of,  may  still 
be  traced.  The  nearest  one  is  less  than  one-fourth 
of  a  mile  from  the  city  gate,  and  the  other  at  the 
well-known  place  called  the  stoccades,  the  stakes 
driven  to  form  which,  still  distinctly  mark  the  place  ; 
and  the  ditch  and  embankment  can  be  traced  for  a 
considerable  distance  through  the  grounds  attached 
to  my  residence. 

A  letter-writer,  who  dates  at  St.  Augustine,  May, 
1Y74,  says  "  This  town  is  now  truly  become  a  heap 
of  ruins,  a  fit  receptacle  for  the  wretches  of  inhabit 
ants."  (Rather  a  dyspeptic  description,  in  all  proba 
bility.) 

A  bridge  was  built  across  the  Sebastian  river  by 
the  English,   "  but  the  great  depth  of  the  water, 
joined  to  the  instability  of  the  bottom,  did  not  suffer 


164  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

it  to  remain  long,  and  a  ferry  is  now  established  in 
its  room  ;  the  keeper  of  the  ferry  has  fifty  pounds  per 
annum  allowed  him,  and  the  inhabitants  pay  nothing 
for  crossing,  except  after  dark." 

The  English  constructed  large  buildings  for  bar 
racks,  characterized  by  Romans  "  as  such  stupendous 
piles  of  buildings,  which  were  large  enough  to  con 
tain  five  regiments,  when  it  is  a  matter  of  great 
doubt,  whether  there  will  ever  be  a  necessity  to 
keep  one  whole  regiment  here.  The  material  for 
this  great  barracks  was  brought  from  New  York, 
and  far  inferior  to  those  found  on  the  spot ;  yet  the 
freight  alone,  amounted  to  more  than  their  value 
when  landed.  It  makes  us  almost  believe,"  says  the 
elaborate  Romans,  "  that  all  this  show  is  in  vain,  or 
at  most,  that  the  English  were  so  much  in  dread  of 
musquitoes,  that  they  thought  a  large  army  requisite 
to  drive  off  these  formidable  foes.  To  be  serious," 
says  he,  "  this  fort  and  barracks,  add  not  a  little  to 
the  beauty  of  the  prospect;  but  most  men  would 
think  that  the  money  spent  on  this  useless  parade, 
would  have  been  better  laid  out  on  roads  and  fences 
through  the  province  ;  or,  if  it  must  be  in  forts, 
why  not  at  Pensacola  ? " 

There  is  a  manuscript  work  of  John  Gerard  AYill- 
iams  de  Bahrn,  existing  in  the  library  of  Harvard 
University,  which  contains  some  particulars  of  inter- 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  165 

• 

est,  relative  to  Florida  at  the  period  of  the  English 
occupation. 

He  states  the  number  of  inhabitants  of  East  Flor 
ida,  which  in  those  days  meant  mostly  St.  Augus 
tine,  from  1663  to  1771,  as  follows:  householders, 
besides  women,  &c.,  two  hundred  and  eighty-eight ; 
imported  by  Mr.  Trumbull  from  Minorca,  &c.,  one 
thousand  four  hundred;  negroes,  upwards  of  nine 
hundred.  Of  these,  white  heads  of  families,  one 
hundred  and  forty-four  were  married,  which  is  just 
one-half;  thirty-one  are  store-keepers  and  traders  ; 
three  haberdashers,  fifteen  innkeepers,  forty-five 
artificers  and. mechanics,  one  hundred  and  ten  plan 
ters,  four  hunters,  six  cow-keepers,  eleven  overseers, 
twelve  draftsmen  in  employ  of  government,  besides 
mathematicians ;  fifty-eight  had  left  the  province  ; 
twenty-eight  dead,  of  whom  four  were  killed  acting 
as  constables,  two  hanged  for  pirating.  Among 
the  names  of  those  then  residing  in  East  Florida  are 
mentioned,  Sir  Charles  Burdett,  William  Drayton, 
Esq.,  planter,  Chief  Justice ;  Rev.  John  Forbes, 
parson,  Judge  of  Admiralty  and  Councillor  ;  Rev.  N. 
Eraser,  parson  at  Mosquito  ;  Governor  James  Grant, 
Hon.  John  Moultrie,  planter  and  Lieutenant  Gover 
nor  ;  William  Stork,  Esq.,  historian  ;  Andrew  Turn- 
bull,  Esq.,  H.  M.  Counselor ;  Bernard  Romans, 
draftsman,  &c. ;  William  Bartrarn,  planter ;  James 
Moultrie,  Esq. 


166  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

• 

He  says,  The  light  house  on  Anastasia  Island 
had  been  constructed  and  built  of  mason-work  by 
the  Spaniards ;  and,  in  1769,  by  order  of  Gen.  Hal- 
diniand,  it  was  raised  sixty  feet  higher  in  carpenter's 
work,  had  a  cannon  planted  on  the  top,  which  is 
fired  the  very  moment  the  flag  is  hoisted,  for  a  sig 
nal  to  the  town  and  pilots  that  a  vessel  is  off.  The 
light  house  has  two  flag-staffs,  one  to  the  south  and 
one  to  the  north ;  on  either  of  which  the  flag  is 
hoisted,  viz.,  to  the  south  if  the  vessel  conies  from 
thence,  and  the  north  if  the  vessel  comes  that  way. 

"  The  town  is  situated  in  a  healthy  zone,  is  sur 
rounded  with  salt  water  marshes,  not  at  all  preju 
dicial  to  health  ;  their  evaporations  are  swept  away 
in  the  day  time  by  the  easterly  winds,  and  in  the 
night  season  by  the  westerly  winds  trading  back  to 
the  eastward.  At  the  time  when  the  Spaniards  left 
the  town,  all  the  gardens  were  well  stocked  with 
fruit  trees,  viz.,  figs,  guavas,  plantain,  pomegranates, 
lemons,  limes,  citrons,  shadock,  bergamot,  China  and 
Seville  oranges,  the  latter  full  of  fruit  throughout 
the  whole  winter  season ;  and  the  pot-herbs,  though 
suspended  in  their  vegetation,  were  seldom  de 
stroyed  by  cold.  The  town  is  three-quarters  of  a 
mile  in  length,  but  not  quite  a  quarter  wide ;  had 
four  churches  ornamentally  built  with  stone  in  the 
Spanish  taste,  of  which  one  within  and  one  without 


OF    ST.     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  167 

the  town  still  exist.  One  is  pulled  down ;  that  is 
the  German  church,  but  the  steeple  is  preserved  as 
an  ornament  to  the  town ;  and  the  other,  viz.,  the 
convent  church  and  convent  in  town  is  taken  in  the 
body  of  the  barracks.  All  houses  are  built  of  ma 
sonry  ;  their  entrances  are  shaded  by  piazzas,  sup 
ported  by  Tuscan  pillars  or  pilasters,  against  the 
south  sun.  The  houses  have  to  the  east  windows 
projecting  sixteen  or  eighteen  inches  into  the  street, 
very  wide,  and  proportionally  high.  On  the  west 
side,  their  windows  are  commonly  very  small,  and 
no  opening  of  any  kind  to  the  north,  on  which  side 
they  have  double  walls  six  or  eight  feet  asunder, 
forming  a  kind  of  gallery,  which  answers  for  cellars 
and  pantries.  Before  most  of  the  entrances  were 
arbors  of  vines,  producing  plenty  and  very  good 
grapes.  No  house  has  any  chimney  for  a  fire-place  ; 
the  Spaniards  made  use  of  stone  urns,  filled  them 
with  coals  left  in  their  kitchens  in  the  afternoon, 
and  set  them  at  sunset  in  their  bed-rooms,  to  defend 
themselves  against  those  winter  seasons,  which 
required  such  care.  The  governor's  residence  has 
both  sides  piazzas,  viz.,  ^  double  one  to  the  south, 
and  a  single  one  to  the  north ;  also  a  Belvidere  and 
a  grand  portico  decorated  with  Doric  pillars  and 
entablatures.  On  the  north  end  of  the  town  is  a 
casemated  fort,  with  four  bastions,  a  ravelin,  counter- 


168  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

scarp,  and  a  glacis  built  with  quarried  shell-stones, 
and  constructed  according  to  the  rudiments  of  Mare- 
chal  de  Vauban.  This  fort  commands  the  road  of 
the  bay,  the  town,  its  environs,  and  both  Toloniako 
stream  and  Matanzas  creek.  The  soil  in  the  gar 
dens  and  environs  of  the  town  is  chiefly  sandy  and 
marshy.  The  Spaniards  seem  to  have  had  a  notion 
of  manuring  their  land  with  shells  one  foot  deep. 

"  Among  the  three  thousand  who  evacuated  St. 
Augustine,  the  author  is  credibly  informed,  were 
many  Spaniards  near  and  above  the  age  of  one  hun 
dred  years,  (observe)  this  nation,  especially  natives 
of  St.  Augustine,  bore  the  reputation  of  great  sobri 
ety."  * 

On  the  3d  of  January,  1766,  the  thermometer 
sunk  to  26°,  with  the  wind  from  N.  W.  "  The 
ground  was  frozen  an  inch  thick  on  the  banks ;  this 
was  the  fatal  night  that  destroyed  the  lime,  citron, 
and  banana  trees  in  St.  Augustine,  many  curious 
evergreens  up  the  river  that  were  twenty  years  old 
in  a  flourishing  state."  f  In  1774,  there  was  a  snow 
storm,  which  extended  over  most  of  the  province. 
The  ancient  inhabitants  still  (1836)  speak  of  it  as  an 
extraordinary  white  rain.  It  was  said  to  have  done 
little  damage.  J 

*  DeBrahm  MS.,  p.  192.  t  Stork,  p.  11. 

\  Williams'  Florida.,  p  17. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  169 

i 

In  this  connection,  and  as  it  is  sometimes  sup 
posed  that  the  climate  is  now  colder  than  formerly, 
it  may  be  stated  that  the  thermometer  went  very 
low  in  1799.  East  Florida  suffered  from  a  violent 
frost  on  the  6th  April,  1828.  In  February,  1835, 
the  thermometer  sunk  to  7°  above  zero,  wind  from 
N.  W. ;  and  the  St.  Johns  river  was  frozen  several 
rods  from  the  shore ;  all  kinds  of  fruit  trees  were 
killed  to  the  ground,  and  the  wild  orange  trees  suf 
fered  as  well  as  the  cultivated. 

Dr.  Nicolas  Turnbull,  in  the  year  1767,  associated 
with  Sir  William  Duncan  and  other  Englishmen 
of  note,  projected  a  colony  of  European  emigrants  to 
be  settled  at  New  Smyrna.  He  brought  from  the 
islands  of  Greece,  Corsica,  and  Minorca,  some  four 
teen  hundred  persons,  agreeing  to  convey  them  free 
of  expense,  find  them  in  clothing  and  provisions, 
and,  at  the  end  of  three  years,  to  give  fifty  acres  of 
land  to  each  head  of  a  family,  and  twenty-five  to 
each  child.  After  a  long  passage  they  arrived  out, 
and  formed  the  settlement.  The  principal  article  of 
cultivation  produced  by  them  was  indigo,  which 
commanded  a  high  price,  and  was  assisted  by  a 
bounty  from  the  English  government.  After  a  few 
years,  Turnbull,  as  is  alleged,  either  from  avarice  or 
natural  cruelty,  assumed  a  control  the  most  absolute 
12 


170  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

over  these  colonists,  and  practiced  cruelties  the  most 
painful  upon  them. 

An  insurrection  took  place  in  IT 69  among  them, 
in  consequence  of  severe  punishments;  which  was 
speedily  repressed,  and  the  leaders  of  it  brought  to 
trial  before  the  English  court  at  St.  Augustine  ;  five 
of  the  number  were  convicted  and  sentenced  to 
death.  Gov.  Grant  pardoned  two  of  the  five,  and  a 
third  was  released  upon  the  condition  of  his  becom 
ing  the  executioner  of  the  other  two.  Nine  years 
after  the  commencement  of  their  settlement,  their 
number  had  become  reduced  from  1,400  to  600. 
In  17^6,  proceedings  were  instituted  on  their  behalf 
by  Mr.  Yonge,  the  attorney-general  of  the  province, 
which  resulted  in  their  being  exonerated  from  their 
contract  with  Turnbull ;  lands  were  thereupon  as 
signed  them  in  the  northern  part  of  the  city,  which 
was  principally  built  up  by  them  ;  and  their  descend 
ants,  at  the  present  day,  form  the  larger  portion  of 
the  population  of  the  place. 

Governor  Grant  was  the  first  English  governor, 
and  was  a  gentleman  of  much  energy ;  and  during 
his  term  of  office,  he  projected  many  great  and  per 
manent  improvements  in  the  province.  The  public 
roads,  known  as  the  king's  roads,  from  St.  Augustine 
to  New  Smyrna,  and  from  St.  Augustine  to  Jackson 
ville,  and  thence  to  Coleraine,  were  then  constructed, 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA,  171 

and  remain  a  lasting  monument  of  his  wisdom  and 
desire  of  improvement. 

Gov.  Tonyn  succeeded  Gov.  Grant ;  and  a  legisla 
tive  council  was  authorized  to  assemble,  and  the 
pretense  and  forms  of  a  constitutional  government 
were  gone  through  with. 

In  August,  1775,  a  British  vessel,  called  the  Bet 
sey,  Capt.  Lofthouse,  from  London,  with  111  barrels 
of  powder,  was  captured  off  the  bar  of  St.  Augustine, 
by  an  American  privateer  from  Charleston,  very 
much  to  the  disgust  and  annoyance  of  the  British 
authorities. 

At  this  period,  St.  Augustine  assumed  much  im 
portance  as  a  depot  SLU&  point  tfappui  for  the  Brit 
ish  forces  in  their  operations  against  the  Southern 
States ;  and  very  considerable  forces  were  at  times 
assembled. 

In  the  excess  of  the  zeal  and  loyalty  of  the  garri 
son  and  inhabitants  of  St.  Augustine,  upon  the  receipt 
of  the  news  of  the  American  Declaration  of  Inde 
pendence,  the  effigies  of  John  Hancock  and  Samuel 
Adams  were  burned  upon  the  public  square,  where 
the  monument  now  stands. 

The  expedition  of  Gen.  Prevost  against  Savannah 
was  organized  and  embarked  from  St.  Augustine,  in 
1779. 

Sixty  of  the  most  distinguished  citizens  of  Carolina 


172  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

were  seized  by  tlie  British  in  1780,  and  transported 
to  St.  Augustine  as  prisoners  of  war  and  hostages, 
among  whom  were  Arthur  Middleton,  Edward  Rut- 
ledge,  Gen.  Gadsden,  and  Mr.  Calhoun ;  all  were 
put  upon  parol  except  Gen.  Gadsden  and  Mr.  Cal 
houn,  who  refused  the  indulgence,  and  were  commit 
ted  to  the  fort,  where  they  remained  many  months 
close  prisoners.  Gen.  Rutherford  and  Col.  Isaacs,  of 
North  Carolina,  were  also  transported  hither,  and 
committed  to  the  fort. 

An  expedition  was  fitted  out  from  St.  Augustine 
in  1783,  to  act  against  New  Providence,  under  Col. 
Devereux ;  and,  with  very  slender  means,  that  able 
officer  succeeded  in  capturing  and  reducing  the 
Bahamas,  which  have  ever  since  remained  under 
English  domination. 

The  expense  of  supporting  the  government  of 
East  Florida  during  the  English  occupation,  was 
very  considerable,  amounting  to  the  sum  of  £122,000. 
The  exports  of  Florida,  in  1778,  amounted  to 
£48,000 ;  and,  in  1772,  the  province  exported  40,000 
Ibs.  indigo;  and  in  1782,  20,000  barrels  of  turpen 
tine. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  173 


CHAPTER    XVI. 


RE-CESSION  OF  FLORIDA  TO  SPAIN— ERECTION  OF  THE  PARISH 
CHURCH— CHANGE  OF  FLAGS.— 1783— 1821. 

IN  June,  1784,  in  fulfillment  of  the  treaty  be 
tween  England  and  Spain,  Florida,  after  twenty 
years  of  British  occupation,  was  re-ceded  to  the 
Spanish  crown,  and  taken  possession  of  by  Governor 
Zespedez. 

The  English  residents,  in  general,  left*  the  coun 
try,  and  went  either  to  the  Bahamas,  Jamaica,  or  the 
United  States.  Those  who  went  to  the  British  isl 
ands  were  almost  ruined ;  but  those  who  settled  in 
the  States  were  more  successful. 

In  April,  1793,  the  present  Roman  Catholic  church 
was  commenced,  the  previous  church  having  been  in 
another  portion  of  the  city.f  It  was  constructed 

*  Among  the  families  remaining  were  the  Ratios,  Flemings,  and  a  few 
others. 

\  The  old  parish  church  was  on  St.  George  street,  on  west  side  of  the 
street. 


174  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

under  the  direction  of  Don  Mariana  de  la  Rocque 
and  Don  P.  Berrio,  government  engineer-officers. 
The  cost  of  the  church  was  $16,650,  of  which  about 
$6,000  was  received  from  the  proceeds  of  the  mate 
rials  and  ornaments  of  the  old  churches,  about 
$1,000  from  the  contributions  of  the  inhabitants, 
and  the  remaining  $10,000  furnished  by  the  govern 
ment.  One  of  its  four  bells  has  the  following  inscrip 
tion,  showing  it  to  be  probably  the  oldest  bell  in  this 
country,  being  now  175  years  old. 


Sancte  Joseph 

Ora   Pro  Nobis 

D  1682 

Don  Enrique  White  was  for  many  years  governor 
of  Florida,  and  died  in  the  city  of  St.  Augustine. 
He  is  spoken  of,  by  those  who  knew  him,  in  high 
terms,  for  his  integrity  and  openness  of  character ; 
and  many  amusing  anecdotes  are  related  connected 
with  his  eccentricities. 

In  1812,  the  American  government,  being  appre 
hensive  that  Great  Britain  designed  obtaining  pos 
session  of  Florida, 'sent  its  troops  into  the  province, 
overrunning  and  destroying  the  whole  country.  The 
manner  and  the  pretenses  under  which  this  was  done, 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  175 

reflect  but  little  credit  on  tlie  United  States  govern 
ment  ;  and  the  transparent  shani  of  taking  possession 
of  the  country  by  the  patriots,  supported  by  United 
States  troops,  was  as  undignified  as  it  was  futile. 
It  is  for  the  damages  occasioned  by  this  invasion, 
that  the  "  Florida  claims  "  for  "  losses  "  of  its  citizens 
have  been  presented  to  the  government  of  the  Uni 
ted  States.  The  principal  of  the  damages  sustained, 
that  is  to  say,  the  actual  value  of  the  property  then 
destroyed,  has  been  allowed  and  paid ;  but  the  in 
terest,  or  damages  for  the  detention,  has  been  with 
held  upon  the  ground  that  the  government  does  not 
pay  interest.  The  treaty  between  the  United  States 
and  Spain  in  reference  to  the  cession  of  Florida  to 
the  United  States,  requires  the  United  States  to 
make  satisfaction  for  such  claims  ;  and  the  payment 
of  the  bare  amount  of  actual  loss,  after  a  detention 
of  thirty  years,  is  considered  by  the  claimants  an 
inadequate  satisfaction  of  a  just  claim. 

In  the  spring  of  1818,  General  Jackson  made  his 
celebrated  incursion  into  Florida,  and  by  a  series  of 
energetic  movements  followed  the  Seminoles  and 
Creeks  to  their  fastnesses,  and  forever  crushed  the 
power  of  those  formidable  tribes  for  offensive  oper 
ations. 

In  the  latter  part  of  1817,  a  revolutionary  party 
took  possession  of  Amelia  Island,  and  raised  a  soi 


176  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

disant  patriot  flag  at  Fernandina,  supported  mainly 
in  the  enterprise  by  adventurers  from  the  United 
States:  McGregor  was  assisted  by  officers  of  the  United 
States  army.  An  expedition  was  sent  from  St.  Au 
gustine  by  the  Spanish  governor  to  eject  the  inva 
ders,  which  failed.  One  Aury,  an  English  adven 
turer,  for  a  time  held  command  there ;  and  also  a 
Mr.  Hubbard,  formerly  sheriff  of  New  York,  who 
was  the  civil  governor,  and  died  there.  The  United 
States  troops  eventually  interfered ;  but  negotiations 
for  the  cession  put  a  stop  to  further  hostilities. 

The  king  of  Spain,  finding  his  possessions  in 
Florida  utterly  worthless  to  his  crown,  and  only  an 
expense  to  sustain  the  garrisons,  while  the  repeated 
attempts  to  disturb  its  political  relations  prevented 
any  beneficial  progress  towards  its  settlement, 
gladly  agreed,  in  1819,  to  a  transfer  of  Florida  to 
the  United  States  for  five  millions  of  dollars. 

An  English  gentleman  who  visited  St.  Augustine 
in  1817,  gives  his  impressions  of  the  place  as  follows : 
"  Emerging  from  the  solitudes  and  shades  of  the  pine 
forests,  we  espied  the  distant  yet  distinct  lights  of 
the  watch  towers  of  the  fortress  of  St.  Augustine,  de 
lightful  beacons  to  my  weary  pilgrimage.  The  clock 
was  striking  ten  as  I  reached  the  foot  of  the  draw 
bridge  ;  the  sentinels  were  passing  the  alerto,  as  I 
demanded  entrance ;  having  answered  the  prelimi- 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  177 

nary  questions,  the  draw-bridge  was  slowly  lowered. 
The  officer  of  the  guard,  having  received  my  name 
and  wishes,  sent  a  communication  to  the  governor, 
who  issued  orders  for  my  immediate  admission.  On 
opening  the  gate,  the  guard  was  ready  to  receive 
me ;  and*a  file  of  men,  with  their  officer,  escorted  me 
to  his  Excellency,  who  expressed  his  satisfaction  at 
my  revisit  to  Florida.  I  soon  retired  to  the  luxury 
of  repose,  and  the  following  morning  was  greeted  as 
ah  old  acquaintance  by  the  members  of  this  little 
community. 

"  I  had  arrived  at  a  season  of  general  relaxation, 
on  the  eve  of  the  carnival,  which  is  celebrated  with 
much  gayety  in  all  Catholic  countries.  Masks,  domi 
noes,  harlequins,  punchinellos,  and  a  great  variety  of 
grotesque  disguises,  on  horseback,  in  cars,  gigs,  and  on 
foot,  paraded  the  streets  with  guitars,  violins,  and 
other  instruments ;  and  in  the  evenings,  the  houses 
were  open  to  receive  masks,  and  balls  were  given  in 
every  direction.  I  was  told  that  in  their  better  days, 
when  their  pay  was  regularly  remitted  from  the  Ha- 
vanna,  these  amusements  were  admirably  conducted, 
and  the  rich  dresses  exhibited  on  these  occasions, 
were  not  eclipsed  by  their  more  fashionable  friends 
in  Cuba ;  but  poverty  had  lessened  their  spirit  for 
enjoyment,  as  well  as  the  means  for  procuring  it; 
enough,  however  remained  to  amuse  an  idle  specta- 


178  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

tor,  and  I  entered  with  alacrity  into  their  diver 
sions. 

"About  thirty  of  the  hunting  warriors  of  the  Sem- 
inoles,  with  their  squaws,  had  arrived,  for  the  pur 
pose  of  selling  the  produce  of  the  chase,  consisting 
of  bear,  deer,  tiger,  and  other  skins,  bears'  grease, 
and  other  trifling  articles.  This  savage  race,  once 
the  lords  of  the  ascendant,  are  the  most  formidable 
border  enemies  of  the  United  States.  This  party 
had  arrived,  after  a  range  of  six  months,  for  the 
purposes  of  sale  and  barter.  After  trafficking 
for  their  commodities,  they  were  seen  at  various 
parts  of  the  town,  assembled  in  small  groups,  seated 
upon  their  haunches,  like  monkeys,  passing  round 
their  bottles  of  aqua  dente  (the  rum  of  Cuba),  their 
repeated  draughts  upon  which  soon  exhausted  their 
contents ;  they  then  slept  off  the  effects  of  intoxica 
tion  under  the  walls,  exposed  to  the  influence  of  the 
sun.  Their  appearance  was  extremely  wretched  ; 
their  skins  of  a  dark,  dirty,  chocolate  color,  with 
long,  straight,  black  hair,  over  which  they  had 
spread  a  quantity  of  bears'  grease.  In  their  ears, 
and  the  cartilages  of  the  nose,  were  inserted  rings  of 
silver  and  brass,  with  pendants  of  various  shapes ; 
their  features  prominent  and  harsh,  and  their  eyes 
had  a  wild  and  ferocious  expression. 

"  A  torn  blanket,  or  an  ill-fashioned  dirty  linen 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  179 

jacket,  is  the  general  costume  of  these  Indians ;  a 
triangular  piece  of  cloth  passes  around  the  loins ; 
the  women  vary  in  their  apparel  by  merely  wearing 
short  petticoats,  the  original  colors  of  which  were 
not  distinguishable  from  the  various  incrustations  of 
dirt.  Some  of  the  young  squaws  were  tolerably 
agreeable,  and  if  well  washed  and  dressed  would  not 
have  been  uninteresting ;  but  the  elder  squaws  wore 
the  air  of  misery  and  debasement. 

"  The  garrison  is  composed  of  a  detachment  from 
the  Koyal  regiment  of  Cuba,  with  some  Uack  troops ; 
who  together  form  a  respectable  force.  The  fort 
and  bastions  are  built  of  the  same  material  as  the 
houses  of  the  town,  coquina.  This  marine  substance 
is  superior  to  stone,  not  being  liable  to  splinter  from 
the  effects  of  bombardment ;  it  receives  and  embeds 
the  shot,  which  adds  rather  than  detracts  from  its 
strength  and  security. 

"  The  houses  and  the  rear  of  the  town  are  inter 
sected  and  covered  with  orange  groves ;  their  golden 
fruit  and  deep  green  foliage,  not  only  render  the  air 
agreeable,  but  beautify  the  appearance  of  this  inter 
esting  little  town,  in  the  centre  of  which  (the  square) 
rises  a  large  structure  dedicated  to  the  Catholic  reli 
gion.  At  the  upper  end  are  the  remains  of  a  very 
considerable  house,  the  former  residence  of  the 
governor  of  this  settlement;  but  now  (1817),  in  a 


180  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

state  of  dilapidation  and  decay,  from  age  and  inat 
tention. 

"  At  the  southern  extremity  of  the  town  stands  a 
large  building,  formerly  a  monastery  of  Carthusian 
Friars,  but  now  occupied  as  a  barrack  for  the  troops 
of  the  garrison.  At  a  little  distance  are  four  stacks 
of  chimnies,  the  sole  remains  of  a  beautiful  range  of 
barracks,  built  during  the  occupancy  of  the  British 
from  1763  to  1783;  for  three  years  the  29th  regi 
ment  was  stationed  there,  and  in  that  time  they  did 
not  lose  a  single  man.  The  proverbial  salubrity  of 
the  climate,  has  obtained  for  St.  Augustine  the  des 
ignation  of  the  Montpelier  of  North  America ;  indeed, 
such  is  the  general  character  of  the  Province  of  East 
Florida. 

"The  governor  (Coppinger),  is  about  forty-five 
years  of  age,  of  active  and  vigorous  mind,  anxious 
to  promote  by  every  means  in  his  power  the  pros 
perity  of  the  province  confided  to  his  command ;  his 
urbanity  and  other  amiable  qualities  render  him 
accessible  to  the  meanest  individual,  and  justice  is 
sure  to  follow  an  appeal  to  his  decision.  His  mili 
tary  talents  are  well  known,  and  appreciated  by  his 
sovereign ;  and  he  now  holds,  in  addition  to  the 
government  of  East  Florida,  the  rank  of  Colonel  in 
the  Koyal  Regiment  of  Cuba. 

"  The  clergy  consist  of  the  padre  (priest  of  the 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  181 

parish),  Father  Cosby,  a  native  of  Wexford,  in 
Ireland ;  a  Franciscan  friar,  the  chaplain  to  the  gar 
rison,  and  an  inferior  or  cure.  The  social  qualities  of 
the  padre,  and  the  general  tolerance  of  his  feelings, 
render  him  an  acceptable  visitor  to  all  his  flock. 
The  judge,  treasurer,  collector,  and  notary,  are  the 
principal  officers  of  the  establishment,  besides  a 
number  of  those  devoted  solely  to  the  military  occu 
pations  of  the  garrison.  The  whole  of  this  society 
is  extremely  courteous  to  strangers  ;  they  form  one 
family,  and  those  little  jealousies  and  animosities,  so 
disgraceful  to  our  small  English  communities,  do  not 
sully  their  meetings  of  friendly  chit-chat,  called  as 
in  Spain,  turtulias.  The  women  are  deservedly 
celebrated  for  their  charms ;  their  lovely  black  eyes 
have  a  vast  deal  of  expression ;  their  complexions 
a  clear  brunette ;  much  attention  is  paid  to  the 
arrangement  of  their  hair ;  at  mass  they  are  always 
well  dressed  in  black  silk  bcwguwae  (petticoats), 
with  the  little  mantilla  (black  lace  veil)  over  their 
heads ;  the  men  in  their  military  costumes ;  good 
order  and  temperance  are  their  characteristic  virtues ; 
but  the  vice  of  gambling  too  often  profanes  their 
social  haunts,  from  which  even  the  fair  sex  are  not 
excluded.  Two  days  following  our  arrival,  a  ball 
was  given  by  some  of  the  inhabitants,  to  which  I 
was  invited.  The  elder  couples  opened  it  with 


182  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

minuets,  succeeded  by  the  younger  couples  display 
ing  their  handsome  light  figures  in  Spanish  dances."* 
The  old  inhabitants  still  speak  in  terms  of  fond 
regret  of  the  beauty  of  the  place  when  embowered 
in  its  orange  groves,  and  the  pleasantness  of  its  old 
customs  and  usages.  Dancing  formed  one  of  their 
most  common  amusements,  as  it  now  does.  The 
posey  dance,  now  become  obsolete,  was  then  of 
almost  daily  occurrence,  and  was  introduced  in  the 
following  manner.  The  females  of  the  family  erect 
in  a  room  of  their  house,  a  neat  little  arbor  dressed 
with  pots  and  garlands  of  flowers,  and  lit  up  brightly 
with  candles.  This  is  understood  by  the  gentlemen 
as  an  invitation  to  drop  in  and  admire  the  beauty  of 
their  decorations.  In  the  mean  time,  the  lady  who 
has  prepared  it,  selects  a  partner  from  among  her 
visitors,  and  in  token  of  her  preference  honors  him 
with  a  bouquet  of  flowers.  The  gentleman  who 
receives  the  bouquet  becomes  then,  for  the  nonce, 
king  of  the  ball,  and  leads  out  the  fair  donor  as 
queen  of  the  dance ;  the  others  take  partners,  and 
the  ball  is  thus  inaugurated,  and  may  continue  sev 
eral  successive  evenings.  Should  the  lady's  choice 
fall  upon  an  unwilling  swain,  which  seldom  hap 
pened,  he  could  be  excused  by  assuming  the  expenses 

•*  Voyage  to  Spanish  Main.     London,  1819.     Page  116,  et  seq. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  183 

of  the  entertainment.  These  assemblies  were  always 
informal,  and  frequented  by  all  classes,  all  meeting 
on  a  level ;  but  were  conducted  with  the  utmost 
politeness  and  decorum,  for  which  the  Spanish  char 
acter  is  so  distinguished. 

The  carnival  amusements  are  still  kept  up  to  some 
extent,  but  with  little  of  the  taste  and  wit  which 
formerly  characterized  them,  and  without  which 
they  degenerate  into  mere  buffoonery. 

The  graceful  Spanish  dance,  so  well  suited  in  its 
slow  and  regular  movements  to  the  inhabitants  of  a 
warm  climate,  has  always  retained  the  preference 
with  the  natives  of  the  place,  who  dance  it  with  that 
native  grace  and  elegance  of  movement  which  seems 
easy  and  natural  for  every  one,  but  is  seldom 
equaled  by  the  Anglo-Saxon. 


184  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

TRANSFER  OF  FLORIDA  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES— AMERICAN 
OCCUPATION— ANCIENT  BUILDINGS,  ETC. 

ON  the  10th  day  of  July,  in  the  year  1821,  the 
standard  of  Spain,  which  had  been  raised  two  hund 
red  and  fifty-six  years  before,  over  St.  Augustine, 
was  finally  lowered  forever  from  the  walls  over 
which  it  had  so  long  fluttered,  and  the  stars  and 
stripes  of  the  youngest  of  nations,  rose  where  sooner 
or  later  the  hand  of  destiny  would  assuredly  have 
placed  them. 

It  was  intended  that  the  change  of  flags  should 
have  taken  place  on  the  4th  of  July ;  owing  to  a 
detention,  this  was  frustrated ;  but  the  inhabitants 
celebrated  the  4th  with  a  handsome  public  ball  at 
the  governor's  house. 

The  Spanish  garrison,  and  officers  connected  with 
it,  returned  to  Cuba,  and  some  of  the  Spanish  fami 
lies;  but  the  larger  portion  of  the  inhabitants 
remained.  A  considerable  influx  of  inhabitants 
from  the  adjoining  States  took  place,  and  the  town 
speedily  assumed  a  somewhat  American  character. 
The  proportion  of  American  population  since  the 
change  of  flags,  has  been  about  one  third.  Most  of 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  185 

the  native  inhabitants  converse  with  equal  fluency  in 
either  language. 

In  the  year  1823,  the  legislative  council  of  Flor 
ida  held  its  second  session  in  the  government  house 
at  St.  Augustine.  Governor  W.  P.  Duval  was 
the  first  governor  after  the  organization  of  the  terri 
tory.  The  Ralph  Eingwood  Sketches  of  Irving  have 
given  a  wide  celebrity  to  the  character  of  our 
worthy  and  original  first  governor,  now  recently 
deceased. 

During  the  month  of  February,  1835,  East  Florida 
was  visited  by  a  frost  much  more  severe  than  any 
before  experienced.     A  severe  northwest  wind  blew 
ten  days  in  succession,  but  more  violently  for  about 
three  days.     During  this  period,  the  mercury  sunk 
to  seven  degrees  above  zero.    The  St.  Johns  river 
was  frozen  several  rods  from  the  shore.     All  kinds 
of  fruit  trees  were  killed  to  the  ground ;  many  of 
them  never  started  again,  even  from  the  roots.    The 
wild  groves  suffered  equally  with  those  cultivated. 
The  orange  had  become  the  staple  of  Florida  com 
merce  ;  several  millions  were  exported  from  the  St. 
Johns  and  St.  Augustine  during  the  two  previous 
years.     Numerous  groves  had  just  been  planted  out, 
and   extensive   nurseries  could  hardly   supply  the 
demand  for  young  trees.     Some  of  the  groves  had, 
during  the  previous  autumn,  brought  to  their  owners, 
one,  two,   and  three    thousand  dollars;    and  the 
13 


186  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

increasing  demand  for  this  fruit,  opened  in  prospect 
mines  of  wealth  to  the  inhabitants. 

"Then  came  a  frost,  a  withering  frost," 

Some  of  the  orange  groves  in  East  Florida  were 
estimated  at  from  five  to  ten  thousand  dollars,  and 
even  more.  They  were  at  once  rendered  valueless. 
The  larger  part  of  the  population  at  St.  Augustine 
had  been  accustomed  to  depend  on  the  produce  of 
their  little  groves  of  eight  or  ten  trees,  to  purchase 
their  coffee,  sugar,  and  other  necessaries  from  the 
stores ;  they  were  left  without  resource. 

"The  town  of  St.  Augustine,  that  heretofore 
appeared  like  a  rustic  village,  their  white  houses 
peeping  from  among  the  clustered  boughs  and  gol 
den  fruit  of  their  favorite  tree,  beneath  whose  shade 
the  foreign  invalid  cooled  his  fevered  limbs,  and 
imbibed  health  from  the  fragrant  air, — how  was  she 
fallen !  Dry,  unsightly  poles,  with  ragged  bark, 
stick  up  around  her  dwellings ;  and  where  the 
mocking-bird  once  delighted  to  build  her  nest,  and 
tune  her  lovely  songs,  owls  hoot  at  night,  and  sterile 
winds  whistle  through  the  leafless  branches.  Never 
was  a  place  rendered  more  desolate."  * 

The  groves  were  at  once  re-planted,  and  soon  bid 
fair  to  yield  most  abundantly;  when,  in  1842,  an 
insect  was  introduced  into  the  country,  called  the 
orange  coccus,  which  spread  over  the  whole  country 

*  Williams'  Florida,  pp.  18,  et  seq. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  187 

with  wonderful  rapidity,  and  almost  totally  destroyed 
every  tree  it  fastened  upon.  Of  late,  the  ravages  of 
this  insect  seem  less  destructive,  and  the  groves 
have  begun  to  resume  their  bearing ;  these  add  to 
the  beauty  of  the  residences  at  St.  Augustine,  with 
their  glossy,  deep-green  leaves,  and  golden  fruit; 
and  hopes  of  an  entire  restoration  are  now  confi 
dently  entertained. 

In  December,  1835,  the  war  with  the  Seminole 
Indians  broke  out ;  and  for  some  years  St.  Augustine 
was  full  of  the  pomp  and  circumstance  of  war.  It 
was  dangerous  to  venture  beyond  the  gates ;  and 
many  sad  scenes  of  Indian  massacre  took  place  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  city.  During  this  period,  great 
apparent  prosperity  prevailed ;  property  was  valua 
ble,  rents  were  high ;  speculators  projected  one  city 
on  the  north  of  the  town,  and  another  on  the  west ; 
a  canal  to  the  St.  Johns,  and  also  a  railroad  to  Pico- 
lata  ;  and  great  hopes  of  future  prosperity  were 
entertained.  With  the  cessation  of  the  war,  the 
importance  of  St.  Augustine  diminished ;  younger 
communities  took  the  lead  of  it,  aided  by  superior 
advantages  of  location,  and  greater  enterprise,  and 
St.  Augustine  has  subsided  into  the  pleasant,  quiet, 
dolcefar  niente  of  to-day,  living  upon  its  old  mem 
ories,  contented,  peaceful,  and  agreeable,  and  likely 
to  remain  without  much  change  for  the  future. 

Of  the  public  buildings,  it  may  be  remarked  that 
the  extensive  British  barracks  were  destroyed  by 


188  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

fire  in  1792;  and  that  the  Franciscan  Convent  was 
occupied  as  it  had  been  before,  as  barracks  for  the 
troops  not  in  garrison  in  the  fort.  The  appearance 
of  these  buildings  has  been  much  changed,  by  the 
extensive  repairs  and  alterations  made  by  the  United 
States  government.  It  had  formerly  a  large  circular 
look-out  upon  the  top,  from  which  a  beautiful  view 
of  the  surrounding  country  was  obtained.  Its  walls 
are  probably  the  oldest  foundations  in  the  city. 

The  present  United  States  Court-house,  now  occu 
pied  by  many  public  offices,  was  the  residence  of 
the  Spanish  governors.  It  has  been  rebuilt  by  the 
United  States ;  and  its  former  quaint  and  interesting 
appearance  has  been  lost,  in  removing  its  look-out 
tower,  and  balconies,  and  the  handsome  gateway, 
mentioned  by  De  Brahrn,  which  is  said  to  have  been 
a  fine  specimen  of  Doric  architecture.* 

Trinity  Episcopal  Church  was  commenced  in  1827, 
and  consecrated  in  1833,  by  Bishop  Bowen,  of 
South  Carolina.  The  Presbyterian  Church  was 
built  about  1830,  and  the  Methodist  chapel  about 
1846. 

The  venerable-looking  building  on  the  bay,  at  the 
corner  of  Green  lane  and  Bay  street,  is  considered 
the  oldest  building  in  the  place,  and  has  evidently. 


*  It  is  said  to  have  been  taken  down  by  the  contractor,  to  form  the 
foundation  of  his  kitchen. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  189 

been  a  fine  building  in  its  day.     It  was  the  residence 
of  the  attorney-general,  in  English  times. 

The  monument  on  the  public  square  was  erected 
in  1812-13,  upon  the  information  of  the  adoption  of 
the  Spanish  constitution,  as  a  memorial  of  that  event, 
in  pursuance  of  a  royal  order  to  that  effect,  directed 
to  the  public  authorities  of  all  the  provincial  towns. 
Geronimo  Alvarez  was  the  Alcalde  under  whose 
direction  it  was  erected.  The  plan  of  it  was  made 
by  Sr.  Hernandez,  the  father  of  the  late  General 
Hernandez.  A  short  time  after  it  was  put  up,  the 
Spanish  constitution  having  had  a  downfall,  orders 
were  issued  by  the  government,  that  all  the  mon 
uments  erected  to  the  constitution  throughout  its 
dominions,  should  be  demolished.  The  citizens  of 
St.  Augustine  were  unwilling  to  see  their  monument 
torn  down ;  and,  with  the  passive  acquiescence  of  the 
governor,  the  marble  tablets  inscribed  PLAZA  DE  LA 
CONSTITUCION  being  removed,  the  monument  itself 
was  allowed  to  stand ;  and  it  thus  remains  to  this 
day,  the  only  monument  in  existence  to  commemo 
rate  the  farce  of  the  constitution  of  1812.  In  1818, 
the  tablets  were  restored  without  objection. 

The  bridge  and  causeway  are  the  work  of  the 
government  of  the  United  States.  The  present 
sea-wall  was  built  between  1835  and  1842,  by  the 
United  States,  at  an  expense  of  one  hundred  thou 
sand  dollars. 


190  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

PRESENT  APPEARANCE  OF  ST.  AUGUSTINE,  AS  GIVEN  BY  THE 
AUTHOR  OF  THANOTOPSIS— ITS  CLIMATE  AND  SALUBRITY. 

ST.  Augustine  has  now  attained,  for  this  side  of 
the  Atlantic,  a  period  of  most  respectable  antiquity. 
In  a  country  like  America,  where  States  are  ushered 
into  existence  in  the  full  development  of  maturity, 
where  large  cities  rise  like  magic  from  the  rude 
forest,  where  the  "  oldest  inhabitant "  recollects  the 
cutting  down  of  the  lofty  elms  which  shadowed  the 
wigwam  of  the  red  man,  perchance  on  some  spot 
now  in  the  heart  of  a  great  city ;  an  antiquity  of 
three  centuries  would  be  esteemed  as  almost  reach 
ing  back  (compared  with  modern  growth)  to  the 
days  of  the  Pharaohs. 

The  larger  number  of  the  early  settlements  were 
unsuitably  located,  and  were  forced  to  be  abandoned 
on  account  of  their  unhealthiness ;  but  the  Spanish 
settlement  at  St.  Augustine  has  remained  for  near 
three  hundred  years  where  it  was  originally  planted ; 
and  the  health  of  its  inhabitants  has,  for  this  long 
period,  given  it  a  deserved  reputation  for  salubrity, 
and  exemption  from  disease,  attributable  to  locality 
or  extraneous  influences  or  causes. 

The  great   age  attained  by  its  inhabitants  was 


^, 


" 


OF    ST     AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  191 

remarked  by  De  Brahm ;  the  number  and  health- 
fulness  of  the  children  that  throng  its  streets,  attract 
now,  as  they  did  then,  the  attention  of  strangers. 
This  salubrity  is  easily  accounted  for,  by  the  almost 
insular  position  of  the  city,  upon  a  narrow  neck  of 
land  nearly  surrounded  by  salt  water ;  the  main 
shore,  a  high  and  healthy  pine  forest  and  sandy 
plains,  so  near  the  ocean  as  to  be  fanned  by  its 
constant  breezes,  and  within  the  sound  of  its  echoing 
waves ;  a  situation  combining  more  local  advantages 
for  salubrity  could  hardly  be  imagined.  While  it 
will  never  probably  increase  to  any  great  extent  in 
population,  it  will  hardly  be  likely  to  decrease.  Its 
health,  easy  means  of  support,  unambitious  class  of 
inhabitants,  with  their  strong  attachments,  and  fam 
ily  and  local  ties,  will  contribute  to  maintain  St. 
Augustine  as  the  time-honored  ancient  city,  with  its 
permanent  population,  and  its  visitors  for  health,  for 
centuries  perhaps  yet  to  come. 

I  cannot  perhaps  better  conclude  these  historic 
notices  than  by  giving  the  impressions  of  the  author 
of  Thanatopsis,*  one  whose  poetic  .fame  will  endure 
as  long  as  American  literature  exists.  Writing  from 
St.  Augustine  in  April,  1843,  he  says, — 

"At  length  we  emerged  upon  a  shrubby  plain, 
and  finally  came  in  sight  of  this  oldest  city  of  the 

*  Bryant. 


192  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

United  States,  seated  among  its  trees  on  a  sandy 
swell  of  land,  where  it  has  stood  for  three  hundred 
years.  I  was  struck  with  its  ancient  and  homely 
aspect,  even  at  a  distance,  and  could  not  help  liken 
ing  it  to  pictures  which  I  had  seen  of  Dutch  towns, 
though  it  wanted  a  wind-mill  or  two  to  make  the 
resemblance  perfect.  We  drove  into  a  green  square, 
in  the  midst  of  which  was  a  monument  erected  to 
commemorate  the  Spanish  constitution  of  1812,  and 
thence  through  the  narrow  streets  of  the  city  to  our 
hotel. 

"  I  have  called  the  streets  narrow.  In  few  places 
are  they  wide  enough  to  allow  two  carriages  to  pass 
abreast.  I  was  told  that  they  were  not  originally 
intended  for  carriages ;  and  that  in  the  time  when 
the  town  belonged  to  Spain,  many  of  them  were 
floored  with  an  artificial  stone,  composed  of  shells  and 
mortar,  which  in  this  climate  takes  and  keeps  the 
hardness  of  rock ;  and  that  no  other  vehicle  than  a 
hand-barrow  was  allowed  to  pass  over  them.  In 
some  places  you  see  remnants  of  this  ancient  pave 
ment  ;  but  for  the  most  part  it  has  been  ground 
into  dust  under  the  wheels  of  the  carts  and  carriages 
introduced  by  the  new  inhabitants.  The  old  houses, 
built  of  a  kind  of  stone  which  is  seemingly  a  pure 
concretion  of  small  shells,  overhang  the  streets  with 
their  wooden  balconies ;  and  the  gardens  between 
the  houses  are  fenced  on  the  side  of  the  street  with 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  193 

high  walls  of  stone.  Peeping  over  these  walls  you 
see  branches  of  the  pomegranate,  and  of  the  orange- 
tree  now  fragrant  with  flowers,  and,  rising  yet  higher, 
the  leaning  boughs  of  the  fig  with  its  broad  luxuriant 
leaves.  Occasionally  you  pass  the  ruins  of  houses — 
walls  of  stone  with  arches  and  stair-cases  of  the  same 
material,  which  once  belonged  to  stately  dwellings. 
You  meet  in  the  streets  with  men  of  swarthy  com: 
plexions  and  foreign  physiognomy,  and  you  hear 
them  speaking  to  each  other  in  a  strange  language. 
You  are  told  that  these  are  the  remains  of  those  who 
inhabited  the  country  under  the  Spanish  dominion, 
and  that  the  dialect  you  have  heard  is  that  of  the 
island  of  Minorca. 

u  c  Twelve  years  ago,'  said  an  acquaintance  of  mine, 
4  when  I  first  visited  St.  Augustine,  it  was  a  fine  old 
Spanish  town.  A  large  proportion  of  the  houses 
which  you  now  see  roofed  like  barns,  were  then  flat- 
roofed  ;  they  were  all  of  shell  rock,  and  these  mod 
ern  wooden  buildings  were  then  not  erected.  That 
old  fort  which  they  are  now  repairing,  to  fit  it  for 
receiving  a  garrison,  was  a  sort  of  ruin,  for  the  out 
works  had  partly  fallen,  and  it  stood  unoccupied  by 
the  military,  a  venerable  monument  of  the  Spanish 
dominion.  But  the  orange-groves  were  the  wealth 
and  ornament  of  St.  Augustine,  and  their  produce 
maintained  the  inhabitants  in  comfort.  Orange-trees 
of  the  size  and  height  of  the  pear-tree,  often  rising 


194  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

higher  than  the  roofs  of  the  houses,  embowered  the 
town  in  perpetual  verdure.  They  stood  so  close  in 
the  groves  that  they  excluded  the  sun;  and  the 
atmosphere  was  at  all  times  aromatic  with  their 
leaves  and  fruit,  and  in  spring  the  fragrance  of  the 
flowers  was  almost  oppressive.' 

"  The  old  fort  of  St.  Mark,  now  called  Fort  Marion, 
— a  foolish  change  of  name — is  a  noble  work,  frowning 
over  the  Matanzas,  which  flows  between  St.  Augus 
tine  and  the  island  of  Anastasia ;  and  it  is  w^orth 
making  a  long  journey  to  see.  No  record  remains 
of  its  original  construction ;  but  it  is  supposed  to 
have  been  erected  about  a  hundred  and  fifty  years 
since,*  and  the  shell  rock  of  which  it  is  built  is  dark 
with  time.  "We  saw  where  it  had  been  struck  with 
cannon  balls,  which,  instead  of  splitting  the  rock, 
became  imbedded  and  clogged  among  the  loosened 
fragments  of  shell.  This  rock  is  therefore  one  of  the 
best  materials  for  fortification  in  the  world.  We 
were  taken  into  the  ancient  prisons  of  the  fort-dun 
geons,  one  of  which  was  dimly  lighted  by  a  grated 
window,  and  another  entirely  without  light ;  and  by 
the  flame  of  a  torch  we  were  shown  the  half  obliter 
ated  inscriptions  scrawled  on  the  walls  long  ago  by 
prisoners.  But  in  another  corner  of  the  fort,  we 
were  taken  to  look  at  the  secret  cells,  which  were 

*   It  is  much  more  ancient. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  195 

discovered  a  few  years  since  in  consequence  of  the 
sinking  of  the  earth  over  a  narrow  apartment  be 
tween  them.  These  cells  are  deep  under  ground, 
vaulted  over-head,  and  without  windows.  In  one  of 
them  a  wooden  machine  was  found,  which  some  sup 
posed  might  have  been  a  rack,  and  in  the  other  a 
quantity  of  human  bones.  The  doors  of  these  cells 
had  been  walled  up  and  concealed  with  stucco,  before 
the  fort  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Americans. 

"  You  cannot  be  in  St.  Augustine  a  day  without 
hearing  some  of  its  inhabitants  speak  of  its  agreeable 
climate.  During  the  sixteen  days  of  my  residence 
here,  the  weather  has  certainly  been  as  delightful  as 
I  could  imagine.  We  have  the  temperature  of  early 
June  as  June  is  known  in  New  York.  The  morn 
ings  are  sometimes  a  little  sultry;  but  after  two  or 
three  hours  a  fresh  breeze  comes  in  from  the  sea 
sweeping  through  the  broad  piazzas,  and  breathing 
in  at  the  windows.  At  'this  season  it  conies  laden 
with  the  fragrance  of  the  flowers  of  the  Pride  of 
India,  and  sometimes  of  the  orange  tree,  and  some 
times  brings  the  scent  of  roses,  now  in  bloom.  The 
nights  are  gratefully  cool ;  and  I  have  been  told  by 
a  person  who  has  lived  here  many  years,  that  there 
are  very  few  nights  in  summer  when  you  can  sleep 
without  a  blanket. 

"  An  acquaintance  of  mine,  an  invalid,  who  has 
tried  various  climates,  and  has  kept  up  a  kind  of 


196  THE    HISTORY    AXD    ANTIQUITIES 

running  fight  with  death  for  many  years,  retreating 
from  country  to  country  as  he  pursued,  declares  to 
me  that  the  winter  climate  of  St.  Augustine  is  to  be 
preferred  to  that  of  any  part  of  Europe,  even  that 
of  Sicily,  and  that  it  is  better  than  the  climate  of  the 
"West  Indies.  He  finds  it  genial  and  equable,  at  the 
same  time  that  it  is  not  enfeebling.  The  summer 
heats  are  prevented  from  being  intense  by  the  sea- 
breeze,  of  which  I  have  spoken.  I  have  looked  over 
the  work  of  Dr.  Forry  on  the  climate  of  the  United 
States,  and  have  been  surprised  to  see  the  uniformity 
of  climate  which  he  ascribes  to  Key  West.  As  ap 
pears  by  the  observations  he  has  collected,  the  sea 
sons  at  that  place  glide  into  each  other  by  the  softest 
gradations ;  and  the  heat  never,  even  in  midsummer, 
reaches  that  extreme  which  is  felt  in  the  higher  lati 
tudes  of  the  American  continent.  The  climate  of 
Florida  is,  in  fact,  an  insular  climate :  the  Atlantic 
on  the  east,  and  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  on  the  west, 
temper  the  airs  that  blow  over  it,  making  them 
cooler  in  summer  and  warmer  in  winter.  I  do  not 
wonder,  therefore,  that  it  is  so  much  the  resort  of 
invalids ;  it  would  be  more  so  if  the  softness  of  its 
atmosphere,  and  the  beauty  and  serenity  of  its  sea 
sons  were  generally  known.  Nor  should  it  be  sup 
posed  that  accommodations  for  persons  in  delicate 
health  are  wanting ;  they  are,  in  fact,  becoming 
better  with  every  year  as  the  demand  for  them 
increases.  Among  the  acquaintances  whom  I  have 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  197 

made  here,  I  remember  many  who  having  come 
hither  for  the  benefit  of  their  health,  are  detained  for 
life  by  the  amenity  of  the  climate.  4  It  seems  to 
me,'  said  an  intelligent  gentleman  of  this  class,  the 
other  day,  '  as  if  I  could  not  exist  out  of  Florida. 
When  I  go  to  the  north,  I  feel  most  sensibly  the 
severe  extremes  of  the  weather ;  the  climate  of 
Charleston  itself  appears  harsh  to  me.' 

"  The  negroes  of  St.  Augustine  are  a  good-looking 
specimen  of  the  race,  and  have  the  appearance  of 
being  very  well  treated.  You  rarely  see  a  negro  in 
ragged  clothing ;  and  the  colored  children,  though 
slaves,  are  often  dressed  with  great  neatness.  In  the 
colored  people  whom  I  saw  in  the  Catholic  church, 
I  remarked  a  more  agreeable,  open,  and  gentle  phys 
iognomy  than  I  have  been  accustomed  to  see  in  that 
class.  The  Spanish  race  blends  more  kindly  with 
the  African  than  does  the  English,  and  produces 
handsomer  men  and  women. 

"  Some  old  customs  which  the  Minorcans  brought 
with  them  from  their  native  country,  are  still  kept 
up.  On  the  evening  before  Easter  Sunday,  about 
eleven  o'clock,  I  heard  the  sound  of  a  serenade  in  the 
streets.  Going  out,  I  found  a  party  of  young  men 
with  instruments  of  music,  grouped  about  the  win 
dow  of  one  of  the  dwellings,  singing  a  hymn  in  honor 
of  the  Virgin,*  in  the  Mahonese  dialect.  They  be- 

*  This  song  is  usually  called  the  Fromajardis. 


198  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

gan,  as  I  was  told,  with  tapping  on  the  shutter.  An 
answering  knock  within  had  told  them  that  their 
visit  was  welcome,  and  they  immediately  began  the 
serenade.  If  no  reply  had  been  heard,  they  would 
have  passed  on  to  another  dwelling.  I  give  the  hymn 
as  it  was  kindly  taken  down  for  me  in  writing,  by  a 
native  of  St.  Augustine.  I  presume  this  is  the  first 
time  that  it  has  been  put  in  print ;  but  I  fear  the  copy 
has  several  corruptions,  occasioned  by  the  unskillful- 
ness  of  the  copyist.  The  letter  e  which  I  have  put 
in  italics,  represents  the  guttural  French  e,  or,  per 
haps,  more  nearly  the  sound  of  the  u  in  the  word 
but.  The  sh  of  our  language  is  represented  by  sc 
followed  by  an  i  or  an  e  ;  the  </,  both  hard  and  soft, 
has  the  same  sound  as  in  our  language. 


14 '  Disciaran  lu  dol 
Cantarem  aub'  alagria 
Y  n'arem  a  da 
Las  pascuas  a  Maria 

0  Maria ! 
"'Sant  Grabiel, 
Qui  portaba  la  ambasciado 
Des  nostro  rey  del  eel, 
Estaran  vos  prenada 
Ya  omitiada 
Tu  o  vais  aqui  serventa 
Fia  del  Dieu  contenta 
Para  fe  lo  que  el  vol 

Disciamn  lu  dol,  &c. 
"  '  Y  a  milla  nit 
Pariguero  vos  regina 
A  un  Dieu  infinit, 
Dintra  una  establina. 
Y  a  milla  dia, 
Quelos  angles  von  cantant 
Pau  y  abondant 
De  la  gloria  de  Dieu  sol 

Disciaran  lu  dol,  &c. 


OF    ST.    AUGUSTINE,    FLORIDA.  199 

"  '  Y  a  Libalam, 
Alia  la  terra  santa 
Nus  nat  Jesus 
Aub'  alagria  tanta 
Infant  petit 

Que  tot  lu  mon  salvaria 
Y  ningu  y  bastaria 
Nu  raes  un  Dieu  tot  sul 

Disciarcm  lu  dol,  &c. 
"  *  Cuant  de  Orion  lus 
Tres  reys  la  stralla  veran 
Dieu  omnipotent 
Adora  lo  vingaran 
Un  present  inferan 
De  mil  encens  y  or 
A  lu  beneit  seiio 
Que  conesce  cual  se  vol 

Disciaran  lu  dol,  &c. 
"  *  Tot  fu  gayant 
Para  cumple  la  prumas 
Y  lu  Esperit  sant 
De  un  angel  fau  gramas 
Gran  foe  ences, 
Que  crania  lu  curagia 
Dieu  nos  da  lenguagia 
Para  fe  lo  que  Dieu  vol 

Disciarem  lu  dol,  &c. 
" '  Cuant  trespasa 
De  quest  mon  nostra  Senora 
Al  eel  s'  empugia 
Sun  fil  la  matescia  ora 
0!  Emperadora 
Que  del  eel  san  eligida 
Lu  rosa  florida 
Mo  resplenden  que  un  sol 

Disciamn  lu  dol,  &c. 
" '  Y  el  tercer  giorn 
Que  Jesus  resunta 
Dieu  y  Aboroma 
Que  la  mort  triumfa 
De  alii  se  balla 
Para  perldra  Lueife 
An  tot  a  sen  penda 
Que  de  nostro  ser  el  sol 

Disciamn  lu  dol,  &c.' 

"After  this  hymn,  the  following  stanzas,  soliciting 
the  customary  gift  of  cakes  or  eggs,  are  sung : — 

"  '  Ce  set  que  vam  cantant, 
Regina  celestial ! 


200  THE    HISTORY    AND    ANTIQUITIES 

Damos  pan  y  alagria 

Y  bohas  festas  tingan 

Y  vos  da  sus  bonas  festas 

Danos  dines  de  sus  nous 

Sempre  tarem  lus  neans  Uestas 

Para  recibi  un  grapat  de  nes, 

Y  el  giorn  de  pascua  florida 

Alagramos  y  giuntament 

As  qui  es  mort  par  dar  nos  vida 

Y  via  glorosiamente, 

A  questa  casa  esta  empedrada 

Bien  halla  que  la  empedro ; 

San  amo  de  aquesta  casa 

Baldria  duna  un  do 

Formagiada  o  empanada 

Cucutta  a  flao ; 

Cual  se  val  casa  rue  grada, 

Sol  que  no  rue  digas  que  no/ 

"The  shutters  are  then  opened  by  the  people 
within,  and  a  supply  of  cheese,  cakes  or  other  pas 
try,  or  eggs,  is  dropped  into  a  bag  carried  by  one  of 
the  party ;  who  acknowledge  the  gift  in  the  following 
lines,  and  then  depart : — 

"  '  Aquesta  casa  reta  empedrada 
Empedrada  de  cuatro  vens ; 
Sun  amo  de  aquesta  casa 
Es  omo  de  compliment.' 

"  If  nothing  is  given,  the  last  line  reads  thus  :- — 

"  *  No  es  homo  de  compliment.1 " 


LIBRARY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  BEFORE  CLOSING  TIME 
ON  LAST  DATE  STAMPED  BELOW 


1 


1972  70 


KM 


•90 


RtC'D 

JUL  0  3 1992 

'IWMtt 


iAR  0  7  1994 


LD62-10m-2,'71 
(P2003slO)9412-A-32 


General  Library 

University  of  California 

Berkeley 


U.C.  BERKELEY  LIBRARIES 


